"1 



Florida 



HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA 



/ 

/BY 

HELEN HARCGURT, 

Authar of -Florida Fruits and How to liaise Themr etc., Editor of 
"Our Some Circle" in the Florida Farmer and 



Fruit Grower. 










LOUISVILLE, KY. 
JOHN P. MORTON & COMPANY. 

1889 



COPYRIGHTED BY 
JOHN P. MORTON AND COMPANY 

1888 



Elecirotyped 

BY ROBERT ROWELL, 

LOUISVILLE, KY, 






PKEFAOE. 



It is not well to venture into unknown regions blind- 
fold, as it were. That souud old admonition to "Look 
before you leap" is full of good common sense, and yet 
it is passed by unheeded more frequently than one can 
well realize. 

We doubt if, in all the globe, there is any one spot con- 
cerning which more has been written, pro and con, than of 
our beloved Florida ; much that is true, much more that is 
untrue. 

An injudicious friend has more power to harm than an 
open foe — and thus has it been with Florida : some of her 
friends, misled by eager enthusiasm, have painted her in 
colors unnaturally brilliant, such as belong not to this 
world, all light, no shadows ; enemies, moved by self inter- 
est to turn the great tide of immigration to other quarters, 
have portrayed Florida in somber tints, dark and forbidding 
enough to deter any but the most courageous from crossing 
her borders. 

We love Florida; of our fair State it may well be said 
that "to know her is to love her," but we hold that her 
truest interests are best served by a plain statement of 
facts, not fancies; of realities, not theories; "the truth, 
the whole truth, and nothing but the truth." 

Not only throughout the United States, but in Europe, 
thousands of home seekers are eagerly turning their eyes 

(3) 



4 PREFACE. 

toward Florida, and questioning as to what manner of life, 
what measure of comfort and success await those who 
elect to cast in their lot with hers. 

To answer these eager questioners, to cast a clear, honest 
light upon the paths they will be called upon to tread, to 
reveal the truths and possibilities of home life in Florida, 
this is the task we have set our pen to perform ; and if, as 
the reader closes the following pages, he is not satisfied that 
an honest, industrious man or ^voman need have no fear of 
not " making a living" and a comfortable home in Florida, 
with less outlay of capital and hardship than elsewhere, 
then has this volume been written in vain. 

Profiting by the experience of a former work (Florida 
Fruits and How to Raise Them) in which several articles 
valuable to settlers were referred to, but no address given 
where they might be procured, an omision which called 
forth numerous inquiries from readers, the present volume 
will be found to contain all the information relative to each 
article mentioned which is necessary to enable the reader 
to procure it direct, thereby immensely enhancing its prac- 
tical value to the settler whose interests it seeks to serve. 

That this humble work, which may at least claim to be 
honest and candid, may be the means of winning many to 
test the peaceful content and comfort of home life in Flor- 
ida is the earnest hope of 

THE AUTHOK. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I.— What Florida Offers. Page 

Comfort and Competence for the Honest and Industrious. 
Increase of Prosperity, and Population of the State. Good 
Investment for both Capital and Labor. Health for the 
In valid 9 

CHAPTER IL— A Backward Glance. 

Why Florida is called "A New Country." A Glimpse 

of her History 24 

CHAPTER III.— Climate. 

Proved by Comparison and Statistics to be the Finest in 
the World. Scientifically '• Moderately Dry :" Variation 
of Temperature Just Sufficient for Health and Comfort. 42 

CHAPTER IV.— Health. 

The First Consideration. Statistics Prove Florida to be 
the Healthiest State in the Union. Safe to Settle at all 
Times of the Year. Purity of the Air. Points in Lo- 
cating : Water, Wells, and Filters 55 

CHAPTER V. — Temperature. Winter. Summer. 

Violent Changes almost unknown. Mild Winters. Cooler 

in Summer than in the Northern States 77 

CHAPTER VI.— Pine Lands and Hammocks. 

Diversity of Soil and Surface. Relative Value in Pro- 
ductiveness and Healthfulness 90 

(6) 



6 CONTENT^. 

CHAPTER YII.— "Where Shall I Settle?" 

Northern, Middle (including West), and South Florida. 
Varied Products and Climatic Differences of the Several 
Sections 100 

CHAPTER VIII.— "What Will it Cost?" 

Prices of Land: According to Location and Quality. 
Cost and Methods of Clearing Land. Solid and Increas- 
ing Value of a Bearing Orange Grove. "Over-produc- 
tion Impossible 116 

CHAPTER IX.— Making the Home. 

Attractive Locations. Beautiful Water Views. About 
Windmills 137 

CHAPTER X.— Home Surroundings. 

Grass Lawns. Vines and Elowers. Shade-trees and Ar- 
bors. Shade for Poultry-yards *lol 

CHAPTER XL— "What Shall I Need?" 

Warm Clothing and Carpets Desirable. Cool Weather. 
" The Dark Days of January, 1886." Whether to Bring 
or Buy in Florida the Household Furniture. Hints for 
Shipping Goods 170 

CHAPTER XII.— "What Shall I Eat?" 

Deprivations in New Neighborhoods. The Provision 
Closet. Conveniences and Food Supply Constantly In- 
creasing 186 

CHAPTER XIII.— Home Supplies. 

Fish, Flesh, and Fowl to be had for the Catching. The 
Gopher Tortoise , 196 

CHAPTER XIV.— "Out oe the Depths." 

A Boat the first Requisite. Methods of Fishing for Trout 
or Bass. Salt-water Fish, Clams, and Oysters. Methods 
of Catching Fresh-water Turtle; Curious Quality of their 
Flesh 209 



COKTENTS. 7 

CHAPTEK XY.*— The Dairy Question— Old Style. 
The Native Plorida Cow. Methods of Milking. How to 
Make a Cow-pen. Best Plan for best results in Fertilizing 
the Soil by Cow-penning. Treatment of the Florida Cow. 223 

CHAPTER XVI.-— The Dairy Questiok— Coming Style. 
Native Stock to be Improved by Crossing with Thorough- 
breds and Proper Treatment. Acclimated Thorough- 
breds should be Bought of Florida Breeders T. . 246 

CHAPTEK XVH*-Pasturage. 

Bermuda, Johnson and Para Grass. Beggar's Weed or 
Indian Clover 261 

CHAPTER XYIII.::_rLORiDA Poultry. 

Nearly all Varieties do Well. How to Treat them Suc- 
cessfully 273 

CHAPTER XIX. = — The Poultry-Yard. 

Shade, Grass, and Pure Water Requisite. The Nursery. 
How to guard against Hawks. Movable Coops and Fences. 296 

CHAPTER XX.«--PouLTRY Patients. 

How to Treat the Few Diseases Florida Poultry are sub- 
ject to g j2 

CHAPTER XXI.'-— Firing the Woods. 

Permitted by Law for the Benefit of Cattle; but will 
soon be a Thing of the Past. A Most Pernicious Cus- 
tom, Injurious to Soil and Property. How to Fight Fire. 320 

CHAPTER XXII.-All About Fences. 

The Fence Law. Repeal Urgent. Injury done by al- 
lowing Stock to roam at Large, and compelling the Ag- 
riculturist to Fence against Them. How to Make Good 
and Cheap Fences. Wire Fences Made at Home 327 

- For the major portions of these chapters we acknowledge our indebt- 
edness to the courtesy of the Florida Dupatch, in whose columns they 
originally appeared. 



8 CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER XXIII.— Household Help. 

Housekeeper's Trials. Florida Negro Servants. Amus- 
ing Experiences. Importance of the Problem of Domes- 
tic Help. How it may be solved 344 

CHAPTER XXIV.— Trials and Tribulations. 

Insect Foes, and How to Eight Them. Harmless Lizards 
and Frogs. The " Bugaboo " of Snakes 366 

CHAPTER XXV.— Making The Best or It. 

Compensations for Drawbacks. How to Make the New 
Home Happy , 401 

CHAPTER XXVI.— Helpful Hints. 

How to Paint Houses. Recipes for Cheap Paints. About 
Horses, "Wagons, and Harness. How to Renovate Car- 
riages. Home-made Furniture, Rugs, and Refrigerators. 
To Preserve Food 408 



HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA 



CHAPTER I. 

WHAT FLORIDA OFFERS. 



A little bird has come tapping at our study door, bear- 
ing in its beak a message from the North, East, West, and 
Southwest, and from "beyond the seas," which reads thus : 

"We have read of Florida's fruits, of her cotton, her 
cane, her climate ; we have heard glowing accounts of 
what has been and can be done through all the length and 
breadth of the noble 'Land of Flowers;' but nowhere 
have we read or heard of the thousand and one details of 
the every-day life that must be met and lived by the set- 
tler before he attains the grand sum total of independence. 
How- do he and his wife live and work and pass their 
time ? What do they wear ? what do they eat ? what does 
it cost ? what can they raise ? Tell us of these things, so 
that all the thousands of us who are coming to Florida 
seeking homes may know to what we are coming, and see 
some clear rays of light shining through the obscurity of 
vague generalities. Things known to you old settlers are 
unknown to us ; things familiar to you are enigmas to us. 
We know that your ways are not as our ways, but we do 
not know the details of the difference, nor how to prepare 
to meet them. We are thirsty for information of the little 
things that go to make up the daily life of the settler. 
Give us to drink of the fountain of knowledge, that we 

(9) 



10 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

may be strong to meet the life we must face iu our future 
homes." 

And so, having been taught that it is as impolite to 
ignore a message as to refuse to notice a verbal question, 
we ' ' take our pen in hand to let you know " of Florida 
Home Life — " the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but 
the truth." 

Florida's climate has been spoken of, and justly, by the 
most eminent scientists as one of the finest, and, aAvay 
from the miasms of the swamps, as one of the most health- 
ful in the world, and we, who know her well, know that 
she has no need of exaggerated statements to plead her 
cause, and we propose to make none. 

We who dwell and have dwelt for years within her bor- 
ders know that our beautiful State has no need of over- 
drawn, rose-colored pictures. 

It is better to understate rather than overstate the 
truth; it is better to climb up than fall down. Human 
nature is apt to fly to extremes, to expect too much, and 
then, not finding it, to shut the eye to the good that really 
nestles amidst the evil. And so it has fared with hundreds 
who have gazed on highly-colored pictures of Florida life, 
pictures tinted with rainbow hues, not a shadow or a 
flaw any where ; and, so gazing, have hastened there wdth 
pockets empty, yet full of anticipations of a quick and 
easy fortune to be obtained without time, or Avork, or 
patience, or deprivation, and then finding that Florida is 
only an earthly country after all, not a paradise, and that 
orange trees are so unreasonable and willful as to decline 
to grow up, increase, bear, gather, and ship their fruit of 
their own volition while their owner sleeps, they turn their 
backs upon the prospective golden fruit and draw a black 
brush over the rainbow-hued picture that had drawn them 
Florida-ward. 



WHAT FLORIDA OFFERS. 11 

We hardly know what our own ideas of Florida life 
were until the realities were before us ; for, in fact (like 
many another, doubtless), we hardly had time to think 
about it at all. 

" Jack and gill went up the hill 
To get a pail of water ; 
Jack fell down and broke his crown, 
And gill came tumbling after," 

and never stopped until they landed in the midst of a 
young orange grove, which some day will surely carry 
Jack and gill up hill again in a gold and green chariot, if 
only they are patient and energetic. 

But there were some of us, we remember, who thought 
the trees had only to be stuck in the ground anyhow and 
then let severely alone for two or three years, when they 
would be found full of glorious fruit. Visions of special 
steamers to be chartered, of whole trains of cars loaded 
with the produce, floated before the glowing imagination ; 
and as for vegetables, they were to be had for the scatter- 
ing of the seed, all the year round, if, indeed, they did not 
spring up and grow of their own accord. 

It is curious to find, in collecting the preconceptions of 
"Florida fever" patients, how wildly just such ideas as 
these obtain credence. Very rarely, indeed, do we find a 
settler who has not formed impossible expectations, and is 
therefore "gwine to be disappinted," and in the rebound 
to see his future home in darker hues than it deserves. 
And all this comes of the unwise laudations of the enthu- 
siastic friends who have done more actual harm to our 
beautiful State than all her foes collectively. 

To clear away the mists and throw in the shadows that 
all earthly paintings must accept as part and parcel of 
themselves, and to tell the honest truth, and in such shape 



12 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

as to do the most practical good, is the earnest object of 
this present work. 

Throughout the length and breadth of these United 
States, north, south, east, and west, and scarcely less in 
Great Britain also, there are at this moment thousands of 
hearts turning wistfully toward Florida as a haven of ref- 
uge and of hope from financial storms or from untimely 
death and disease. These inquirers are eager to know the 
real, substantial advantages she holds out to those who 
elect to cast their lot with hers, and the Floridian who sets 
forth these advantages side by side with the ever-attendant 
disadvantages, giving publicity to facts and not to "vain 
imaginings," will do his State more real service than he 
who willfully misleads by false statements impossible to be 
credited by any reasonable thinking being. 

We hold that our beautiful State has no need of exag- 
geration, no need of that which is bright to be painted 
brighter. She only wants the truth to be known to mark 
her out as thrice blessed among her sister States. She has 
her drawbacks and deprivations, of course, though these 
are fewer than those of any other new country that we 
know of. Take notice that w^e use the word "new," for 
there are those who come to Florida ignoring the fact of 
its very recent opening up to settlers, and then grumble 
because things are not conducted in the old well-worn 
grooves they have been accustomed to in their old homes, 
whose rescue from the wilderness dates back for many 
years, even to the hundreds. There are plenty of such 
unreasonable, unreasoning, impractical people in the world, 
and occasionally they edify and amuse their wiser brethren 
by holding forth on the subject of imaginary grievances. 
Florida has seen a goodly number of them, and some of 
them not being known outside her borders in their true 
character have done her considerable injury. Many a man 



WHAT FLORIDA OFFERS. 13 

has come to our beautiful State, lured by glowing descrip- 
tions and rose-colored pictures of impossible perfections, 
with his expectations wrought to the highest pitch, and 
finding no paradise of ease and plenty awaiting his picking 
up without working or waiting, has turned his back upon 
her and gone back whence he came, to revile her as a 
fraud, a sham, a " trap to catch sinners." 

Surely it is better for Florida that her settlers should 
come to her with moderate, reasonable expectations, and 
find their ideas lower than the reality ; far better this way 
than the opposite of expecting too much, and meeting bit- 
ter disappointment, and such a revulsion of feeling that 
the good that really lies before them is swallowed up in 
the gloom. Florida desires nothing but tlie truth to be 
told of her wealth and virtues — the plain, sober truth, in 
facts and figures, of deeds done and work accomplished, of 
what has been and is, not of the theoretical ''might be," 
this should be enough to satisfy an energetic, reasonable 
man ; and she wants none other. She is beautiful, but is 
not a paradise ; her climate, both summer and winter, is 
delightful, but it is not perfection; the summer days and 
nights are cooled by such breezes as are seldom known at 
the North. The heat is therefore less oppressive than the 
same season in any other State, in the North or South, but 
the warm weather continues longer. The winter has no 
snow, but sometimes there is ice, a thin skim that forms 
during the night and usually vanishes in the morning, but 
stays long enough to nip tender vegetables; so that the 
truck gardener must hasten to plant again in order not to 
lose the cream of the early Northern markets. And some- 
times there is a drought that shrivels up the vegetables and 
keeps back the earliest shipments. 

So you see there do exist drawbacks and discourage- 
ments, but they are not always nor all the time, and the 



14 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

man of pluck and energy who has made up his mind 
to act on that grand old adage, "If at first you don't 
succeed, try, try again," is certain to triumph in the 
end. 

We heard the other day of a man (and this is only one 
instance out of hundreds) who came to Florida a few years 
ago with six hundred dollars' capital, borrowed money, 
every dollar of it. In five years he had repaid the money, 
including a heavy interest, and had three times as much in 
the bank, besides being the owner of forty acres of land, 
a young orange grove and peach orchard, two horses, half 
a dozen cows, and a comfortable house. He wisely located 
on a line of railroad to secure quick transportation, instead 
of settling in some place where his products could not find 
a market, and then he rolled up his sleeves and went to 
work like a man, to raise vegetables. He was new to the 
business, had been a hard-worked book-keeper, struggling 
vainly to support his family even in the most frugal man- 
ner. He knew nothing of farm life, but he studied, used 
his eyes and his brains as well as his hands, questioned his 
neighbors, did not disdain to take advice from men less 
educated but better informed in agriculture than himself, 
and so he succeeded, as every man will who follows his 
example — one of true worth and manliness. His cucum- 
bers brought him from four to six dollars a crate, his toma- 
toes from two to six dollars, and peas, beans, beets, potatoes, 
and cabbages in like proportion ; and he blessed the day 
that he resolved to turn his back on the office desk and 
seek his fortune in fair Florida's outstretched hand. 

It was not all plain sailing, be it understood. He worked 
faithfully and intelligently in spite of discouragements. 
Sometimes frost killed his young plants; sometimes dry 
weather did it. Insects helped them, dishonest commis- 
sion men robbed him, but he kept steadily on, planting a 



WHAT FLORIDA OFFERS. 15 

new crop as fast as the old one was killed or gathered. 
Neither he nor the ground were allowed to remain idle. 

To-day he is in possession of as pretty a home as one 
need wish to see. His wife and children are well and 
happy, and his life is full of contentment. " What a con- 
trast," he exclaims, " to what it was eight years ago !" And 
all because he had the nerve to drag himself out of the old 
worn-out groove and the pluck to hammer out a new one. 

This is no fancy picture, but one that every energetic 
man may make a reality for himself if he will but seize 
and hold Florida's royal bounty. And this man, take 
notice, Avas a gentleman, educated and trained as a book- 
keeper — one of a vast army who struggle on from day to 
day, overworked, underpaid, or not paid at all. 

Take up any one of the newspapers of our great cities, 
and what do we see ? The same old story that has been 
told over and over again for years past. ''A merchant 
advertised for a clerk at ten dollars a week, and eight hun- 
dred applied for the position." "There are now no less 
than seven thousand book-keepers out of employment 
in this one city alone!" Is not that a pitiful show- 
ing? and in "one city alone." Think of it then all over 
the country ! Now why is it that so many young men 
prefer the precarious life of a salaried clerk, book-keeper, 
or salesman, shut in-doors all day and every day, from 
morning till night, earning barely enough to keep up 
appearances before the world, layiug by nothing to meet 
the rainy season, sure to come — if "out of employment," 
" on the sick list," " too old to work"— to the free, manly 
life of the farmer or fruit-grower, breathing God's pure 
air, uncontaminated by the dust and smoke of cities, liv- 
ing a life of comfort and freedom from care, even if one 
of honest daily toil, and storing up for the future a suffi- 
cient independence for himself and his family ? Why is 



16 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

it? Is it because in these days of ultra civilization and 
refinement manual labor lias come to be looked upon as 
unworthy of a "gentleman"? 

Fie upon it ! If this is the reason of the surplusage of 
clerks and book-keepers, and the scarcity of young farm- 
ers and horticulturists and artisans, why then let us hasten 
back to the good old times of barbarism, and be happy and 
prosperous because we are not educated above a good, hon- 
est, hard day's work ! 

''Do ye not perceive," saith the Great Ruler of us all, 
"that whatsoever thing from without entereth into the 
man, it can not defile him?" But "that which cometh 
out of the man, that defileth the man." And so it is not 
the work that a man does that lowers him, but his manner 
of doing it. A sturdy, intelligent tiller of the soil, free to 
come and go, to breathe the pure air and join in the joyous 
hymns of the birds, doing his work cheerfully, energetic- 
ally, and in the best manner, is surely the full equal of the 
salaried book-keeper, sitting at his desk, at the call of 
another, and liable to be thrown out on the world penni- 
less after years of steady application to work that is cer- 
tainly less elevating, free, and manly than that of the 
farmer or fruit-grower. 

Florida holds forth her hand in hearty welcome, not 
only to the capitalist and manufacturer, whose gold is a 
magnet to draw forth yet more of the precious metal from 
amidst her hidden treasures and mysteries, and to utilize 
those resources of which we already know. Not only these 
does Florida welcome, but also, with just as much earnest- 
ness, the poor, honest man, be he ci-devant clerk, book- 
keeper, mechanic, artisan, or farmer, who comes to her 
seeking a comfortable home, and is neither ashamed nor 
too lazy to work for it. She wants good men and true — 
men of intelligence, of mind, and of muscle, with willing 



WHAT FLORIDA OFFERS. 17 

hands to convert her vast forests into rich fields and fruit- 
ful groves, and to fill their own treasure chest with the 
well-earned reward of honest toil judiciously expended. 
She has ample room for the skilled workman, the indus- 
trious mechanic, the day laborer, the farm hand, the truck 
farmer, the fruit-grower, the merchant, the blacksmith, 
and all the ' ' many men of many trades " who go to make 
up our busy, hard-working world. It is a noble, boun- 
teous gift that she holds out to such as these, who flee to 
her from the crowded, icy North. It can all be summed 
up in one word — a veritable multiim in 'parvo. 

Comfort! a glorious boon, is it not? — a comfortable cli- 
mate, a comfortable home, a comfortable competence, a 
comfortable life for all their days to come, and a comfort- 
able fortune for their children after them. It is all here 
waiting for the self-chosen ones, who elect to take advan- 
tage of the gift so freely offered to those who have man- 
hood enough to grasp it and make the best use of it. But 
mark well that proviso, *' to grasp it and make the best use 
of it." For there are some who take and hold it in a fee- 
ble, half-hearted sort of way, and do not, by any means, 
make as good use of it as they might, and others who are 
so blind that they may gaze straight into bonnie Florida's 
outstretched palm and see nothing there but the sand that 
has got into their eyes and afiected their vision with a curi- 
ous obliquity and color-blindness that changes all the fair 
landscape to one deep shade of blue. 

Aye ! it is a most generous offer — comfort — a boon for 
which weary thousands upon thousands are seeking all their 
lives long and never find it, not for an hour or a day — a 
most noble gift indeed, but not made to sloths nor slug- 
gards, nor to men who expect to reap where they have not 
sowed, to gather without planting, to thrust an orange tree 
into the ground one day and see the golden fruit drop into 

2 



18 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

their pockets the next; nor to men who possess neither 
patience nor energy, neither perseverance nor "backbone," 
who prefer sharp practice to honesty, falsehood to truth. 
For such men as these Florida has no gifts to offer ; she does 
not want them, has no room for them, and gives them small 
encouragement to encumber her fair fields and forests. 

Not only in our own dear country, but in England, Scot- 
land, Ireland, Nor\tay, Sweden, Germany, there are thou- 
sands upon thousands of men and women, many of them 
too in the higher walks of life, struggling day by day to 
meet the daily, never-ending problem of how to live and 
how to clothe and educate their children. Ah ! did they 
but know of the peaceful, comfortable home that fair Flor- 
ida holds forth for their acceptance ! 

When the cold, chilling breath of the Ice King sweeps 
over the land of the North, and suffering — suffering from 
cold, from starvation, from sickness — presses its heavy hand 
upon the downcast, " out of work," poverty-stricken toilers 
of the earth, we of sunny Florida read the sad story w4th 
aching hearts ; we look out upon our own bright surround- 
ings and clear, warm sky, upon trees loaded with golden 
fruit, ground green with growing crops, chickens and ducks 
merrily chasing insects ; birds, rabbits, fish, turtle, and, on 
the coast, oysters and clams to be had for the catching; 
upon our own lightly clad forms, our small wood fires, 
some days not even called into requisition ; upon cord after 
cord of heat-giving, life-giving wood lying rotting on the 
ground ; upon master builders, carpenters, artisans of all 
kinds crying out, *' We can not work faster because we can 
not get workmen enough." We of bonuie Florida look out 
upon all these things, and the contrast in the lives of those 
wretched, suffering masses of the North, as it is, with what 
it might be if they would but accept the comforts that 
Florida freely offers them, fills our hearts with a yearning 



WHAT FLORIDA OFFERS. 19 

compassion aud desire to point out the open road that lies 
before them, did they but see it. And we are thankful, 
intensely thankful to know that the number of those who 
do see it is daily increasing — increasing, too, just as we 
would have it, in exact proportion as the veil of mystery 
is lifted from Florida's beautiful, genial form, and she 
stands revealed, her true self, the refuge, the benefactor 
of the struggling multitude. 

The weary, anxious father and mother, whose hard, un- 
remitting toil scarce suffices for the present needs of their 
little ones, aud who, so long as they creep on in the same 
old groove, are able to lay by not one dollar for the future 
or for the ''rainy day," so certain to come to all sooner or 
later, need but to transplant their household treasures to a 
genial Florida home to find in the present, comfort, and in 
the future competence, if nothiug more; and this, too, 
with less toil and hardship, less anxiety from day to day 
than they endured in the old life behind them. And many 
are awakening to this truth. Here, there, every where, we 
see colonies forming, neighbors joining hands and fleeing 
in a body from the icy winters of their old homes to seek 
an easier, more prosperous life in sunny Florida, making 
in themselves a community bound together by mutual asso- 
ciations in the past, giving to each other hope, support, 
encouragement in the present and future. 

To the honest man willing to work, with a wife or chil- 
dren willing to lend a helping hand, there can be no such 
word in Florida as "fail." Even the despairing widow 
with little children dependent upon her, if she is able to 
work and can but get together enough money to carry her 
to one of the growing Florida towns, secure an acre or 
half acre of land (there are some who donate several acres 
to actual settlers), and erect a little frame house thereon, 
will find plenty of work to do, and reduced expenses for 



20 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

clothing and fuel; profit, too, in raising a few chickens 
and vegetables ; and meantime, for the future, may have 
growing on her little property a few well-cared-for orange 
and other fruit trees. For mark well this fact: a few 
trees properly tended will pay better and quicker than five 
times the number only half nourished and cultivated. 
One acre of land set with choice orange trees, say fifty of 
them, with peach, fig, and pear trees in the diamonds and 
corners, and vegetables raised between them, will in a few 
years go far toward supplying the wants of any reasonable 
family. And there are very few who could not acquire 
this much of landed property in bonnie Florida. 

Florida offers opportunities for the energetic and indus- 
trious in every class of life, from the great capitalist down 
to the common day laborer. In all her towns workmen of 
every kind are in request at excellent wages, with less ex- 
pense for clothing and fuel and house rent to be met than 
at the North. In every one of the numerous towns spring- 
ing up all over the State, wherever and whenever the fast- 
spreading net work of transportation lines- reaches out its 
life-giving arms — in every one of these numerous towns 
there are openings ready and waiting for all who choose to 
grasp them. For the man or woman who would embark in 
mercantile pursuits, with only a small capital to start with ; 
for the merchant, the dressmaker, the tinsmith, the milli- 
ner, the baker, the washer and ironer, the blacksmith, the 
carpenter — for each and all, in fact, Florida has a welcome 
and a home. 

The day has gone by when there was employment in 
Florida only for builders and those connected with horti- 
cultural pursuits. "Many men of many minds" can now 
find plenty of opportunities to ply their several callings 
with profit. Merchants, manufacturers, capitalists are 
coming in day by day, and as to the future resources and 



WHAT FLORIDA OFFERS. 21 

possibilities of our infant State no one now living dares 
fix their limit, for the simple reason (by way of illustra- 
tion) that no one dare say that Edison, the great elec- 
trician, can proceed no further than his last wonderful 
invention, that of telegraphing to and from a railroad 
tram gomg at full speed. Year by year, month by month, 
as the tide of immigration and travel flows across the bor- 
der m a steadily augmenting stream, some new resource 
some new indication of Florida's future greatness is discov- 
ered ii.ven her most despised productions develop into 
iresh resources of wealth and channels of industry. Wit- 
ness, in passing, the much condemned scrub or saw pal- 
metto, found here, there, every where. Its fiber proves 
to be very valuable for manufacturing brushes and brooms 
and various other things, while its sturdy roots are found 
to be richer in tannin than the much-vaunted oak, and 
hence invaluable in tanning leather. Ground fine or 
burned, it is also a valuable fertilizer. The long gray 
moss which drapes the, hammock trees is coming into exten- 
sive use for mattresses and upholstery; and so we might go 
on swelling our list indefinitely. Tobacco factories are 
already in operation at several points, ice factories are nu- 
merous, the manufacture of textile fibers has commenced, 
fruit and vegetable canneries are springing into being, cot- 
ton mills coming to the fore, cattle ranches are close at 
hand. 

^ But it is not the purpose of this present work to enter 
m detail into the various methods that Florida ofl^ers of 
winning home and competence to- the industrious and 
mtelhgent toilers of the world. Enough that we have 
indicated the roads that lie open to the -Home Life in 
Florida" and its possibilities. As to the means that shall 
support that home, it is for the settler to choose according 
to his means or inclination. Our sole object is to show 



22 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

what the Florida home may be made, what the settler must 
expect to meet, and how to make the best of his or her sur- 
roundings. We want the every-day realities of the new 
home to be known, so far as it is possible for our humble 
pen to reveal them, and in the telling of it all it shall be 
our earnest endeavor to adhere strictly to facts and to point 
out all sides of Florida life, good, bad, and indifferent. 
Happily we can truthfully say that the former largely pre- 
dominates. Those who come to Florida "to stay," seek 
health, wealth, and a happy home, and these they will find 
if they are sought for in a reasonable, sensible spirit. We 
trust that when our readers lay down the pages of this book 
they will have gained a correct idea of Florida home life. 
Very many still hold to the same utterly unjust and 
erroneous opinion of Florida's true inwardness that was 
once uttered concerning her by that most eccentric states- 
man and senator, John Randolj)h, of Roanoke. It was 
when the question of the purchase of Florida from Spain 
was being considered by the United States Senate, and 
Randolph was bitterly opposed to it. ' ' What is Florida ?" 
he exclaimed. "A land of swamps, everglades, filled with 
frogs, tadpoles, snakes, terrapins, alligators, mosquitoes, 
gallinippers, and ague and fever ! AVhy, sir, a man would 
not emigrate to that county, even from purgatory ! What, 
then, do we want Avith Florida?" And all the John Ran- 
dolphs are not dead yet, but they are dying rapidly. Flor- 
ida kills them all ofi*, one after the other, as fast as they 
look upon her fair, honest face. One glance does it ; but 
the trouble is that so many do not take that one glance, 
and hence, if they pay any attention to the subject at all, 
are liable to be deceived, whether they believe all or be- 
lieve nothing. Those who know Florida as she is, are 
those who love her best, and are most willing to tell the 
truth about her, without fear or favor. 



WHAT FLORIDA OFFERS. 23 

Not yet is she appreciated by the world at large as she 
should be and will be in the near future ; but she is better 
known now than she was two or three years ago, and is 
to-day considered as one of the most valuable sections of 
our great nation— the only part on the eastern side of our 
country where snows never fall, and where, in literal 
truth, ''perpetual spring abides and never-fading flowers." 
False statements, deliberate, unblushing, malicious, have 
been made time and again, with the one set purpose of 
doing our beautiful State an injury, and other statements 
have been made also with a very different intent, yet 
scarcely less untrue because the picture they drew of ease, 
comfort, and rapid wealth are penciled in colors too bright 
to be realized in this world, inasmuch as they are promised 
without the prelude of waiting or working. And yet, in 
spite of the assaults of unscrupulous foes and injudicious 
friends, Florida prospers with an exceeding prosperity, 
because the truth is ever triumphant; and here are a few 
figures that go to prove what she has done in the last few 
years, which we clip from a current newspaper : 

"The census returns show that the people of Florida 
are getting richer very rapidly. During the five years 
since the census of 1880 the population increased at the 
rate of about 13,000 yearly, or from 269,494 to 334,146, 
while the value of property has increased from $30,000,000 
to $60,000,000 in round numbers. Thus twice the values 
represented by the population in 1880 are represented now 
by a population increased less than one sixth, and, averag- 
ing the property ^er capita, makes each individal of to-day 
worth nearly twice as much as he was five years ago. These 
figures are even more satisfactory than those showing the 
increase of population. There are a good many more of 
us, and we are much richer." 



24 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

CHAPTER II. 

A BACKWARD GLANCE. 

The question is frequently asked, " How is it, if Florida 
is so desirable a country as a home, a fruit orchard and 
vegetable garden, that people have been so long in finding 
it out ? Why was it not thickly settled long years ago ?" 
And the query is natural enough if one has not paid much 
attention to the records of Florida's history ; but when one 
pauses to look backward into those strangely romantic 
pages, the wonder ceases. Not one amidst all the various 
units that go to make uj^ the noble sum total of our United 
States can boast of a story so full of marked events and 
tragic romance that savors of the olden times as can the 
beautiful "Land of Flowers," which, even from the first 
moment of its discovery, seemed to be set apart from the 
rest of the continent to undergo an experience all its own. 
The very fashion of that discovery was out of the ordi- 
nary track of common events. 

Dating from the ever memorable year 1492, when the 
immortal Columbus revealed the existence of another con- 
tinent to the astonished denizens of the "Old World," 
each year had witnessed the departure from the shores of 
the latter of one or more expeditions fitted out for the 
double purpose of discovery and conquest. But though 
the several voyagers had sailed all along the eastern shores 
of the new continent, from the Carolinas northward, and 
had landed here and there, exploring the country, its riv- 
ers and harbors, yet none had set foot on the Florida coast, 
although one or two had sailed within sight of its eastern 
shores. No good harbor for their ships ofiering, however, 
they passed it by unheeding. Somehow, as we have inti- 



A BACKWARD GLANCE. 25 

mated already, the southernmost extremity of North Amer- 
ica seems from the first to have been, by common consent, 
set apart for "future consideration." Nature had, in a 
measure, placed it by itself, and man was disposed to fol- 
low her example. Oddly enough, it was decreed that the 
saymg, - the last shall be first, and the first shall be last," 
should be verified in this instance. 

While other lands to the north and west of Florida were 
bemg drenched in the blood of conquered and conquerors 
and settlements formed and as quickly abandoned, the fair 
land so long neglected was destined to have and to hold 
the first permanent settlement on the whole continent- 
for, as every one knows, the quaint little town of St' 
Augustine, .^ill bearing the imprint of its Spanish ori- 
gm, antedates all others in America. 

But it was with no thought of future St. Augustine or 
any other settlement that Juan Ponce De Leon turned his 
prow toward the fair land of Florida. The discovery of 
the -New World" had drawn to its shores hosts of adven- 
turers m search of fame, gold, and conquest, many of 
them seekmg them, too, under the guise of relio-ion— the 
promotion of the cause of the church and the conversion 
of the heathen. But of none of these things thou-ht 
Fonce De Leon. He sought a personal benefit, it is true 
but of a widely different kind. The heyday of his youth 
had passed, but not, as he now fondly hoped, forever He 
had heard wondrous tales of a marvelous spring wherein 
one's youth might be regained, and this, this done, was 
the object of his quest-the realization of a new, strange 
hope Juan Ponce De Leon had served his country dur- 
mg the wars in Granada with no slight distinction, and 
when Columbus sailed on his second voyage to the -New 
World he had discovered, De Leon went with him in 
search of a fresh field for adventure. On this expedition 



26 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

he added not a little to his reputation as a skillful, daring 
soldier, and his services were rewarded by the appointment 
to the governorship of Bimini, one of the Bahama Islands 
lying nearest to the great continent. 

De Leon lived in an age of comparative ignorance, and 
thei'efore superstition held full sway over the minds of the 
masses of all ranks, from the highest to the lowest. Par- 
ticularly was this the case tvith the traveler, who witnessed 
much that he could not understand, and consequently set 
it down to the account of an agency not "of the earth, 
earthy." Ponce De Leon was not an exception to the 
general rule. He had journeyed far and often, over sea 
and land, and had seen many wonderful things which he 
attributed to supernatural causes. In the new land in 
which his lot Avas now cast there was much to astonish the 
rough, ignorant soldier. The very existence of this great 
country was in itself a thing to marvel at. Altogether 
poor De Leon was in a proper frame of mind to be victim- 
ized, or, rather, to victimize himself; and that is just what 
he did, aided not a little therein by the wondrous tales 
brought to his credulous ears by those of his comrades in 
arms who had j^enetrated into the wilds of the continent. 

Now, among the aborigines of Bimini and of the adja- 
cent islands there was a legend which had been handed 
down from father to son from time out of mind, and none 
could tell its origin beyond tracing it to a certain great 
cacique. It was hardly a legend either, for its whole pur- 
port was to the effect that he who bathed in the stream 
should renew his youth. It was, in fact, only a different 
version of our own saying that "cleanliness is next to god- 
liness." The far-away cacique, dead so long ago that his 
very name was forgotten, who impressed this maxim on 
his people, was certainly a wise old gentleman, and worthy 
of more renown than has fallen to his lot. The strength 



A BACKWARD GLANCE. 27 

and vigor of youth is a boon cherished by all ; hence, to 
preserve it, or to recover it when lost, the natives bathed 
frequently, and by so doing did much to attain their object, 
since cleanliness is certainly a great promoter of health, 
and health simulates youth. This was, doubtless, the full 
and entire extent of the wise cacique's meaning, and as 
such the great majority of his people received it; but here 
and there one might be found who took the matter less lit- 
erally, and held fast to the belief that the cacique's words 
referred to one particular spring or fountain, which, it was 
true, they had not yet discovered, but only because it had 
not been perseveringly searched for. 

With sundry of these believers the veteran De Leon 
took counsel, and at once decided in his own mind that 
the Fountain of Youth was an actual, tangible fact, some- 
where ; therefore, that it could be discovered, and that 
Ponce De Leon was the happy man destined to accomplish 
this great feat and to be the first to profit by it. Week 
after week, month after month, the Governor of Bimini 
brooded over this wonderful fountain, until he became a 
man with but one idea, a monomaniac. He boldly avowed 
his firm belief that any man, no matter how worn out with 
age he might be, who should dip his body into the waters 
of this mighty spring, would emerge restored to the full 
bloom of youth and strength. Imbued with the idea that 
his own lost youth might be regained did he but make the 
effort, the sturdy warrior at length threw prudence to the 
winds, and with a few followers embarked on a voyage 
among the neighboring islands, determined to find the life- 
giving fountain, if he spent years in the search; for of 
what value were years upon years when once the wonder- 
ful youth restorer were discovered? In the light of our 
modern knowledge and contempt of superstition, it is pit- 
iful to think of a strong man, a renowned soldier and 



28 HOME LIFE IX FLOEIDA. 

leader, thus- wasting his energies in the vain quest of a 
supernatural boon on earth. 

Long and weary were the days and weeks that followed 
his departure from Bimini. Buffeted about by wind and 
wave, De Leon persevered in his search for that which did 
not exist, landing on every island and every little point of 
terra firma, exploring every hill and hollow, tramping 
through weary miles of tangled underbrush, and plunging 
into every stream, every spring, and every hole containing 
water, no matter how slimy or muddy it might be. But 
from none of these many baths did he rise up one whit the 
younger ; on the contrary, the historians tell us, what one 
would naturally suppose would be the result, that all this 
toil and exposure and fatigue, coupled with continual anx- 
iety and disappointment seriously affected De Leon both 
in mind and body, so that he never afterward displayed 
his wonted energy or judgment in thought or deed. 

Hither and thither sailed poor, deluded Ponce De Leon, 
wearied and disheartened, yet still convinced that the 
Fountain of Youth existed and that in time he should find 
it. So magnificent a boon to mankind would naturally be 
difficult of access. Men hid their best treasures, often- 
times ; then why not Dame Nature ? 

Suddenly, on the 27th of March, 1512, while beating 
about on the ocean, De Leon unexpectedly sighted land, 
and, sailing cautiously nearer, perceived that it was an 
extensive country, heretofore unknown, and very different 
from the small islands of the Bahamas. SloAvly he crept 
along the coast, seeking a harbor for his ships, and at last 
he landed on the spot where now stands the oldest city in 
the United States, St. Augustine. Splendid forests of pine 
trees, immense oaks, cypress, magnolia, palm, and bay 
trees rose grandly toward the sky, adorned to their very 
tops with the long gray moss now so familiar to us all. 



A BACKWARD GLANCE. 29 

From the ground at their feet peeped forth, amidst a rank 
growth of coarse grass, flowers of all colors ; and even 
away up toward the tree tops climbing vines bedecked the 
green foliage with yellow and white and scarlet flowers, all 
gleaming and glinting in the sunshine, with the graceful, 
sober-tinted moss waving to and fro in their midst, and alto- 
gether forming a scene so weirdly strange and beautiful 
that Ponce De Leon and his followers with one accord 
named this new land "Florida" — blooming or flourishing. 
And thus was our fair peninsula christened for all time by 
the Spanish adventurer. 

So elated was the old warrior by the grand discovery he 
had accidentally made that even the long-cherished dream 
of the Fountain of Youth was relegated to the back- 
ground; and although one might naturally suppose that 
here in this fairy-like land, if any where, the wondrous 
fountain might well be located, yet nov7 De Leon turned 
suddenly from his chimera, and instead of wasting still 
more of his valuable time in any further search, he at 
once proceeded to investigate the extent of this new island, 
as he believed it to be. 

Knowing as we do, at this present day, all the many 
visible and hidden dangers and intricacies of navigation 
among the Florida reefs, and violent currents produced by 
the Gulf Stream in flowing among the numerous islands or 
" keys," it is a marvel that De Leon was able to follow the 
coast in safety, as he did, from the site of St. Augustine 
southward, finally rounding the southernmost point and 
sailing northward a short distance along the western shore. 

Although still believing the land he had discovered to 
be an island, he was now well assured that it was very 
large and important. He therefore hastened to Porto 
Rico and thence to Spain, where he laid before the king 
the particulars of his discovery, and received as a reward 



30 . HOME LIFE IN FLOEIDA. 

authority to conquer and govern the country, under the 
high-sounding title of Adelantado. Returning to the West 
Indies, he immediately commenced extensive preparations 
for an expedition of conquest and settlement. The build- 
ing and arming of ships and the enlistment of the proper 
kind of men for such work consumed a considerable time, 
and it so happened, unluckily for Ponce De Leon, that he 
was in the interval called upon to suppress an insurrection 
of the Caribs, who, having loug patiently borne with the 
wanton cruelty of their conquerors, were at last roused to 
resistance. And now the physical results of that direful 
search over sea and land for the Fountain of Youth 
revealed themselves more unmistakably than ever. De 
Leon, the renovv^ned soldier, had lost his cunning. He led 
his men through swamps and jungles, with a reckless dis- 
regard of probable ambuscades and entanglements more 
suited to a young, inexperienced volunteer than to a dis- 
ciplined, war-hardened veteran. His soldiers died from 
sickness brought on by needless exposure and fatigue, their 
ranks were thinned by unseen foes who lurked behind the 
trees and underbrush, ever and anon sending a fatal arrow 
into their midst. Instead of securing, as they expected, 
an easy victory over the untaught savages, one reverse 
after another overtook the devoted band, until they were 
compelled to abandon the expedition, the whole burden of 
its failure being justly ascribed to the want of skill and 
judgment of its leader. 

The effect of this reverse was disastrous to the future 
fortunes of De Leon. His prestige was gone forever, and 
men feared to trust to his leadership. The result was that 
nine years elapsed before he succeeded in collecting even a 
small force to accompany him to the beautiful land of 
which he was nominally Adelantado. Before that unfor- 
tunate expedition against the Caribs Ponce De Leon could 



A BACKWARD GLANCE. 31 

have filled a dozen ships with enthusiastic followers. Now 
he could with difficulty find enough men willing to accept 
his leadership to fill two ships. With these, however, he 
finally set sail once again for the flowery shores of Fforida, 
still believing his promised domain to be a large island. 

Landing, he spent some time in explorations with a 
view to locating a colony, the nucleus of his government. 
The natives, astonished at the sight of the white stran- 
gers, kept carefully aloof during these preliminary pro- 
ceedings ; but, coming at length to the conclusion that 
their presence boded themselves no good, they determined 
to drive them away. 

Had Ponce De Leon been the soldier he once was, their 
resolves had been made in vain ; but here again, as with 
the Caribs, he neglected the most ordinary precautions, 
and conducted all his operations with culpable careless- 
ness, despising the naked heathen too much to guard 
against his attack. Strange that he had not yet bought 
experience ! 

The Indians collected in large numbers, and while De 
Leon was busily engaged in planning the site for his col- 
ony, he and his men were boldly attacked and completely 
routed by their savage foes. 

De Leon himself was scA^erely wounded by an arrow, 
and this accident tended not a little to the demoralization 
of his force. Carrying their leader with them, they fled to 
their ships, returning with all haste to Cuba. 

Here, soon after. Ponce De Leon, the deluded, baffled 
soldier, laid down his arms forever. The wounded body 
and broken spirit proved too heavy a burden for a life that 
once had deemed no deed of valor impossible. 

And thus ended the first scene in the history of Florida. 

The disastrous result of De Leon's expedition had, as 
might be supposed, a dampening effect on the ardor of 



32 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

those sturdy adventurers whose minds were set on the dis- 
covery and conquest of " golden countries," and for a time 
Florida was relegated to her wonted quiet and obscurity. 

Individual merchants, however, made repeated visits to 
her shores, and on one of their expeditions a certain Diego 
Miruelo obtained a considerable quantity of gold. We 
are not told how much nor in what shape, but, however 
it was, the fact was sufficient to revive all the old delusive 
stories of Florida's fabulous wealth in gold and silver. 

These Spaniards, be it remembered, had before their 
eyes the solid facts of the enormous wealth in these metals 
already, ' ' in sight " of the recent conquests in Peru and 
Mexico, and readily conceived that other lands might prove 
as rich. Not only so, but by this time they had learned 
from communications with the Indian inhabitants that 
Florida, so far from being the island they had supposed, 
was --only a small section of a vast country, and therefore 
so much the more worth conquering. They accordingly 
claimed as ''Florida," and the property of the Spanish 
Crown, the whole continent of North America, even includ- 
ing Quebec. 

In February, 1528, the second would-be Spanish con- 
querer of Florida, the Adelantado Narvaez, landed on her 
beautiful coast and took possession for Spain with solemn 
ceremonials. Noticing some golden ornaments in the pos- 
session of the Indians, and learning that they had obtained 
them at "Apalachen, a country in the interior," Narvaez, 
despite of his total ignorance of the land he was to pene- 
trate, of the difficulties and foes he might encounter, took 
up his line of march for the interior, with only one day's 
provisions. 

The history of that march is pitiful indeed. Unspeakable 
hardships awaited the adventurers ; a third of their num- 
ber perished by the arrows of the Indians, and more than 



A BACKWARD GLANCE. 33 

another third died from exposure and fatigue. Finally, 
after reaching the coast and not finding their fleet awaiting 
them, they built rude boats, sewed their shirts together as 
sails, and made ropes of the fibers of palm trees. They were 
hunting for the ships they had left to await their return, 
but it was like "hunting for a needle in a hay-stack," igno- 
rant as they were where to look. Hither and thither they 
sailed, without aim or result. Some died of disease, some 
of starvation, after vainly endeavoring to preserve life by 
eating the bodies of their dead comrades. 

Finally, from five boats holding forty men each, the once 
proud expedition was reduced to one boat, containing six 
men and a boy ! One of these men was the hapless vete- 
ran, Narvaez. Near the mouth of the Perdido Kiver his 
soldiers went ashore to seek provisions, while he himself, 
with a sailor and the boy, remained in the boat. Djir- 
ing the night a violent wind drove the boat out upon 
the Gulf; and there, either by drowning or starvation, the 
life-light of the once brilliant soldier went out. Neither 
the boat nor its occupants were ever heard of again. 

The four soldiers, left thus on shore in the midst of ene- 
mies, fared but little better. They finally succeeded, how- 
ever, after seven years of misery of all kinds, slavery to 
the Indians included, in reaching Mexico, and were there 
rescued by their own countrymen. Meantime the ships 
that should have met them on the Florida coast returned 
to Spain, having given up their comrades for lost. 

Thus ended the second scene in Florida's history. 

In the year 1539 came Fernando De Soto to try his for- 
tune in Florida, and landed at Tampa Bay, which he 
named Espiritu Santo. He had a thousand men at his 
back, and three hundred and fifty horses. His search was 
not so much for conquest as for gold. 

Marching onward, the Indians opposed his a4vauce at 



34 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Ocali (now Ocala, Marion County), the cacique, Vitachuco, 
met and fought the Spanish invaders, but of course was 
utterly routed by the superior Aveapons and discipline of 
his foes. 

De Soto marched on through Florida into Alabama, his 
troops meeting hardships, death by arrows, death by dis- 
ease, starvation, fatigue ; but no gold. Then, while at the 
Indian village of Mawvilla (presumably Mobile), their 
leader heard that not far away, at Ochuse, now Pensacola, 
his shij)S were waiting his arrival ; but so infatuated, so 
resolute to find gold or die, was this fated soldier, that he 
carefully kept the news from his many followers, and 
straightway led them further into the interior. And there, 
less than four years after his enthusiastic- landing at Tampa 
Bay, with his thousand troopers, Fernando De Soto, one 
of the most brilliant soldiers of his time, was laid to rest 
beneath the waters of the Mississippi River, lest, if buried 
on land, his Indian foes should find the grave, and, freed 
from their fear of the great warrior, destroy his followers. 
This sad duty performed, the disheartened remnant of 
the expedition started on the march for Mexico, three 
hundred and eleven survivors out of a thousand having 
marched five hundred miles and wasted four years of their 
lives for no result. 

And so closed the third scene in Florida's history, leav- 
ing her just w^here Juan Ponce De Leon had found her 
thirty years before, except indeed that her soil was the 
richer for Spanish blood and Spanish bones. 

And now one would have thought that at last the adven- 
turous Spaniards would have been content to abandon 
Florida to its fate. 

But the fact is, that those rugged old soldiers of by- 
gone days were very much as we find the human family at 
the present time : each one thought himself smarter than 



A BACKWARD GLANCE. 35 

his predecessor, and that he would succeed where the latter 
had failed. Moreover, each was searching for another 
Peru or Mexico, with their marvels of a\ ealth. 

Consequently, just twenty years after the landing of 
Fernando De Soto at Tampa Bay, another force, even 
more splendid in equipments and greater in numbers, 
landed at the then Bay of Santa Marie, now Pensacola, 
fifteen hundred men, and a large number of priests to 
christianize the natives, under the leadership of Don Tris- 
tan De Luna. 

The expedition was ill-omened from the start, for within 
a few days after their arrival a hurricane wrecked every 
one of their ships, together with the greater portion of 
their provisions. Nothing daunted, however, they built a 
ship from the remnants of the fleet, and, sending it back 
to Cuba for more stores, set forth into the interior to look 
for gold, and convert the natives by conquest and oppres- 
sion and chains. 

Some of the Indians were friendly, but there is such a 
thing as trespassing on the hospitality of our friends, and 
** wearing out our welcome." 

Wearied and worn, the Spanish troops, coming to a pleas- 
ant spot and finding generous hosts, sat them down for a 
good long period of rest and enjoyment. It was all very 
well at first, but soon the poor Indians found themselves 
likely to be eaten out of house and home. They were not 
rich ; in fact, it was rather hard times with them, because 
(we suppose) the "factory hands had struck for higher 
wages," the railroad freights had " eaten up the profits on 
vegetables," and the pigs had rooted up their sweet pota- 
toes, and the savings bank had gone all to pieces. 

At all events, whatever the inducing causes might have 
been (there are some who may not credit the above as 
such), the friendly Indians felt that they had " too much 



36 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

of a good thing." They could not invite their unwelcome 
elephants to leave by force of arms, so they got rid of them 
by a strategem worthy of the most august court in Europe. 

One morning an ambassador from the most powerful 
King of Coosa arrived to interview the great white war- 
rior. He was most gorgeously arrayed in paint and feath- 
ers, and accompanied by a large number of attendants. 
His errand was to convey a most pressing invitation from 
the King of Coosa (Alabama) to visit him forthwith, 
bringing all his troops with him. 

Nothing loth, the valiant De Luna set forth for Coosa, 
guided by the ambassador, and after several days of hard 
traveling he awoke one morning to find the ambassador 
and his suite vanished, and himself — sold, a fact he speedily 
realized. 

He, however, pushed on toward Coosa ; as well there as 
any where. Hardships pursued the adventurers; they 
grew ill-tempered and quarreled and mutinied ; they suf- 
fered from hunger, lived upon roots, berries, and acorns ; 
and at last, with a few followers only left of all the brave 
fifteen hundred, Tristan De Luna made his way back to 
Santa Marie or Pensacola, and there found ships awaiting 
him, with orders to return to Mexico forthwith. 

And so ended the fourth Spanish attempt to wrest golden 
conquest from Florida. 

There was, in very truth, a golden conquest to be made 
in that beautiful country, but it was not to be won by 
force or the sword ; rather by peace and the plow. 

Possibly, after this, the Spaniards might have let Florida 
alone as an unlucky country, but there is a good deal of 
the dog-in-the-manger disposition in human nature. 

The French Huguenots, under the direction of the 
famous Admiral Coligni, conceived the project of a settle- 
ment in the New World, and, after several unsuccessful 



A BACKWARD GLANCE. 37 

attempts, finally built Fort Caroline, on the St. John's 
River, at a point, it is supposed, now called St. John's Bluff. 

All this stirred up the Spaniards once more, and under a 
fierce, bigoted leader, Don Pedro Menendez, an expedition 
was fitted out to drive the accursed heretics out of Florida. 
This force landed at St. Augustine, as Menendez named 
the settlement he at once founded as a basis of supplies, 
and thus, in the year 1565, was started the first settlement 
in Florida, and the oldest in the United States. 

The French commander, Ribault, hearing of his ene- 
mies' approach, resolved to become the assailant. Taking 
five hundred men, and leaving less than one hundred in 
the fort, he sailed for St. Augustine ; but before reaching 
the mouth of that river a storm drove his ships out to sea, 
and then drove them on shore, leaving them total wrecks, 
and himself and his men three hundred miles from their 
fort. 

After nine days of constant marching and hardships 
they arrived in sight of their longed-for haven, to see the 
Spanish flag floating over the rampart! It was a cruel 
blow. 

Ribault justly distrusted the assurances of Menendez ; 
but his men were worn out, unable to retreat, unable to 
fight, and the only thing left to do he did — surrendered to 
Menendez, on his promise of safety. Then the treacherous 
Spaniards, taking their prisoners into the fort (from across 
the river), thirty at a time, tied their hands behind their 
backs and mercilessly slaughtered them, heaping useless 
cruelties and indignities upon them, while the military 
band played its loudest and merriest to drown the cries for 
mercy. 

And so the poor Frenchmen were murdered, each de- 
tachment ignorant of the fate of its predecessors. Ribault, 
pleading for his men, was stricken down, stabbed in the 



38 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

back, and covered with wounds. And then Menendez, not 
satisfied with his demoniacal work, hung up the mangled 
bodies to a tree and wrote above them, "Not as French- 
men, but as heretics." 

But it was not long before retribution came : * 'As ye 
mete, it shall be meted unto you." 

A French warrior, De Gourges, his heart burning to 
avenge his countrymen, equipped an expedition at his own 
expense, sailed from France, reached Florida, and was 
there joined by a large body of the natives, who had 
learned to love the more gentle Frenchmen as much as 
they hated the Spaniards. 

De Gourges was fortunate in every movement. He sur- 
prised and captured the Spanish forts on the St. John's, and 
hung their garrisons on the very same trees from which 
the mangled remains of his unfortunate countrymen had 
been suspended, writing above them, "Not as Spaniards, 
but as traitors, robbers, and murderers." 

Menendez, the arch-murderer, escaped, because he was 
in Spain at the time of De Gourges' vengeance. 

From this time forth the Spaniards held to their settle- 
ment at St. Augustine, fighting off and on all the time 
with the English, who now began to settle along the Car- 
olina and Georgia shores, which Spain claimed as also 
"Florida." 

In 1696 the Spaniards began to colonize the western 
coast of Florida, and built a fort at Pensacola, besides 
establishing missions at various points. 

Finally, in 1763, by a treaty, Spain ceded Florida to 
England in exchange for Havana, which heretofore had 
belonged to the British Empire. The result of the Span- 
ish claim to Florida, held since 1512, being two small mili- 
tary settlements. 

The new English possessors at once proceeded to make a 



A BACKWARD GLANCE. ' 39 

very different use of their prize. General James Grant 
was appointed Colonial Governor, immigration was invited, 
land grants made to officers and soldiers upon condition of 
settlement, books descriptive of Florida were issued and 
distributed, good roads built (some still remaining), agri- 
culture was fostered, the culture of indigo encouraged. 

During the Revolution no less than seven thousand 
tories and loyalists found refuge in Florida, which re- 
mained under English supremacy. 

In 1780 Governor Tonyn called together the first Gen- 
eral Assembly of Florida. 

And now the beautiful State at last was prosperous. 
Indigo culture was a splendid success ; the turpentine pro- 
duct was very valuable. Florida's fame as a manifold agri- 
cultural country was slowly spreading, and immigration 
was rapidly on the increase. But nature in those days 
was not done playing football with genial Florida. 

England had lost all the rest of her American posses- 
sions south of Canada, so she did not care now to keep 
Florida, consequently she tossed her over into the lap of 
Spain once more. The English settlers, all their cherished 
labors come to naught, being allowed eighteen months to 
rise up and go back home to the " old countree." 

So once more poor Florida was put to bed and to sleep 
in the Spanish cradle, dreaming realistic dreams of border 
warfare, fights with Indians, broils among adventurers, 
and runaway convicts. Once, in 1812, a party of Georgians 
resolved to annex Florida, and govern it their own way, 
and they marched down to St. Augustine to take it. But 
on complaint of the Spaniards, the young United States 
Government sat down on the Georgians, and sent them 
home in disgrace, like naughty boys. 

The United States already owned that portion of Florida 
lying west of the Perdido River. Spain had ceded it to 



40 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

France, and the latter, as a part of Louisiana, sold it to 
the American Government in 1803. Having this much, 
the Georgians, like Oliver Twist, wanted "more, more," 
hence their action in the premises. 

Spain, like England, at length concluded that Florida 
was an elephant it would be well to get rid of, as costing 
more than it earned; so, in 1821, it was formally handed 
over to the United States, and in 1822 East and West 
Florida were consolidated into the Territory of Florida, 
under an organized government, and soon after the site of 
the former Indian settlement of Tallahassee was selected as 
the capital. 

And now, as the rich agricultural possibilities of the 
country and its wonderful climate began to be understood 
at last, and more and more immigration crossed the bor- 
ders, the Indians became an important factor in the case. 
They occupied some of the best portions of the State, and 
naturally resisted the advance of the whites, whom they 
waylaid, murdered, and plundered continuously. In one 
Indian village alone, when General Jackson, in 1818, cap- 
tured it, were found three hundred fresh scalps of men, 
women, and children. 

The burning of plantations, the carrying off of stock, 
the murder of their owners were every-day occurrences ; 
and at last it became imperative to remove the Indians 
from the country, or abandon the fairest of all the United 
States to their sole use and benefit. Until this was done, 
and, as every one knows it cost seven years of war and mas- 
sacre to do it, it is no wonder that the settlement of Flor- 
ida was slow. 

It was not until 1842 that the settlers felt safe and could 
draw a long breath of relief, freed forever from their ene- 
mies. But still the development of the country was necessa- 
rily slow. It lay outside the usual line of travel, and trans- 



A BACKWARD GLANCE. 41 

portation facilities were few and far between. But these 
points were rapidly improving, and Florida was once more 
striding forward when the unhappy civil war broke out, 
and again her onward progress was checked. But not for 
long. 

After three hundred and seventy years of playing foot- 
ball to Spain, France, England, Indians, Florida is now 
herself again, and is blossoming out into one of the most 
noble, most beautiful flowers in the giant bouquet held by 
Uncle Sam — the United States. 

In growth, in improvements, in developments, in possi- 
bilities, Florida stands among the first and foremost. The 
infant has awakened from her long sleep, a very giant of 
wonders, and will yet be known as one of the wealthiest 
among her many powerful sisters, as she will ever be the 
fairest. 



42 HOME LIFE IN FLOKIDA. 

CHAPTER III. 

CLIMATE. 

Going back to its Greek derivation, we find that the 
word climata means literally, ' ' the slope of the earth from 
the equator toward the pole." In its modern meaning it 
signifies the condition of a place in relation to the various 
phenomena of the atmosphere, as temperature, moisture, 
and other properties of the same nature, which may either 
directly or indirectly affect animal life and more notably 
that of man. 

Florida has many, very many attractions, not fanciful 
nor ephemeral, but real, solid, lasting, and amid them all 
the brightest jewel in her crown of brilliant gems is her 
climate. . The '' Italy of America" is a title frequently ap- 
plied to our fair State, but those who know Italy, and 
also know Florida, assert that the inference is very far 
from flattering to the latter. While Italy and Southern 
France enjoy a winter climate far milder than that of the 
rest of Europe, still it is incomparably inferior to that of 
Florida. And as to their spring time, here is what an 
eminent physician, who has made the subject one of special 
study, says of that, in concluding a winter contrast by 
no means to the advantage of our trans-atlantic neighbors : 
"I will say nothing of their spring, for no one who has 
ever tried it, or. who has inquired of any reliable authority 
about it, would trust himself there after the first of March. 
Even in the most sheltered localities, as at Cannes and 
Mentone, a change on one of the most pleasant days from 
the sunny to the shady side of the street often produces a 
shiver, and renders necessary for an invalid an extra cov- 
ering. At sunset one must rush home and in-doors for his 



CLIMATE. 43 

life ; nor does any prudent man dare to ride out in the 
afternoon without the wraps he would require in his north- 
ern home. Such is the case even in Algiers, which is a 
superior climate to that of the north shore of the Mediter- 
ranean." 

In Nice, that much-vaunted resort for those Europeans 
who seek a mild climate, the same physician tells us that, 
"In winter there is a difference of 12° to 24° between the 
temperature of places exposed to the south and the north, 
between those in the shade and in the sun," and traveling 
from Nice to Italy we find in the latter a significant saying 
that, " Only dogs and strangers go on the shady side." 

And here, in contrast, let us notice one more brief quo- 
tation, this also from the pen of a well-known physician : 
' ' In Florida during most of the warm and pleasant days 
one may not only be out at sunset on land, but with equal 
comfort on the water. I have frequently called the atten- 
tion of persons to this contrast with the European climates, 
when we were returning from a row at sunset in mid-win- 
ter, some of us in our shirt-sleeves. Had there been any 
considerable dampness in the air this would not have been 
prudent or comfortable." 

From the earliest visitors, and from the numerous adven- 
turers who once landed on Florida's shore, came enthusiastic 
reports of her climate, and from that time to this the cry 
has been taken up and echoed and re-echoed all over the 
world, a paraphrase of the Mussulman's watch-word, " Flor- 
ida ! Florida ! there is but one Florida !" 

Why, would you ask? 

In the first place, our State is a peninsula almost in its 
entirety, and from the earliest days of civilization peninsu- 
las have always been preferred as favorite residences, and 
resorted to in the winter by those living in the cold, inland 
countries, because their climates are always milder, and 



44 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

have a peculiarity all their owu, iu the fact that the heat 
rising from the vast bodies of water lying on either side, 
tempers and modifies every cold current of air that passes 
over their surface. This during the winter season. Iu 
the summer time the same force is at work; the cooler 
waters absorb a portion of the heat contained in the warm 
air sweeping across their bosom and store it up for their 
genial winter service to their landward neighbor. 

For these reasons the climate of a peninsula varies 
greatly from that of inland countries, even in the same 
section and same latitude. 

We have already noted the fact that Florida now con- 
fessedly holds the front rank before all other peninsulas or 
seaside countries. There are very good reasons for this. 
Not one of them all has the same latitude, the same 
slope to the winter sun, the same topography, and the same 
features. 

The Apennine Mountains, with their lofty snow-capped 
summits, chill the air that circulates over the Mediterra- 
nean and Atlantic seas. In Mexico, in Southern Cali- 
fornia, in Spain, in France, every where, save in our bon- 
nie Florida, Ave find mountain ranges tow^ering aloft, their 
white peaks covered with snow, their hollows with ice, cool- 
ing off the air faster than the sun can warm it, obstructing 
the pressure of the winds in summer and in winter, keeping 
the kindly breezes in check during the one season, and send- 
ing down cold, cutting winds during the other. 

Now, Florida has nothing like this, so far as such expe- 
riences go. Her surface is comparatively level, having 
only a gentle rise between the ocean on one side and the 
gulf on the other, so that the breezes, warmed by her out- 
lying waters in the winter season and cooled by them dur- 
ing the summer, are ever free to play back and forth over 
her beautiful bosom. And when we say that her surface 



CLIMATE. 45 

is comparatively level, we do not mean to be understood 
that it is actually and entirely flat, though we know this 
is the generally received opinion, and quite on a par with 
some of the other ideas that are wafted across land and 
sea concerning our sunny Florida. " Low and damp, and 
generally malarial," those are the terms a supposed-to-be- 
reliable professor applied to her not very long ago in the 
columns of a magazine that should have more carefully 
guarded its pages against the crime of " bearing false wit- 
ness against its neighbors." We shall have more to say 
about that charge by and by, for we intend to look thor- 
oughly into this question of Florida's climate, since upon 
this point hinges the whole subject of her suitability as a 
home — a healthy, happy home worthy of the name. 

But just now we have to do with her surface, which is 
by no means uniformly level ; in fact, one of its greatest 
and oddest features is its picturesque lack of uniformity 
of any kind, for it is all one strange mixture of rock and 
sand, hill and flat woods, pine land, and hammock land, 
rivers and lakes, interior and coast line, fruits of the 
tropics, the semi-tropics, and the temperate zones ; trees of 
the equatorial regions, and of the colder climes, and vege- 
tables of the most tender as well as the most hardy kinds. 

Florida is more than seven times as large as Massachu- 
setts. It is larger than the States of New Hampshire, 
Vermont, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Maryland, Dela- 
ware, and Rhode Island combined. Florida is one fourth 
larger than the great Empire State of New York, and 
fifty per cent greater than the State of Ohio with its pop- 
ulation of three millions. Stepping across the Atlantic, 
we find it covering considerably more territory than Greece, 
Belgium, and Switzerland, and it goes squarely over the 
whole of England by a surplus of nine thousand square 
pailes. 



46 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Florida is one of the largest States in the Union ; the 
very largest east of the Mississippi River. It embraces 
37,913,600 acres of good, solid land, and 4,440 square 
miles of water, and has over 1,200 miles of coast line. So 
you see there is plenty of room for variety of all kinds, 
especially so when we note the fact that her length from 
north to south (that is, from the southern point of the 
peninsula to the Georgia line) is 380 miles, and her 
breadth in what is called the mainland portion, is 345 
miles from the Atlantic Ocean to the Rio Perdido. The 
average breadth of the peninsula is less than one hundred 
miles, and that of the strip between the Gulf of Mexico 
and the Georgia and Alabama Hues is less than forty miles, 
consequently there is no portion of the State so far removed 
from the vicinity of the sea air as not to feel its modifying 
influences. 

South Florida — and by this term we mean those coun- 
ties that have an undisputed claim to the title which is 
often erroneously bestowed on others that should more 
properly be termed the ''Central Belt." South Florida, 
represented by the counties of Dade, Monroe, Brevard, 
Manatee, Lee, Hillsboro, Hernando, Osceola, Citra, and 
Polk are noted for their generally "level" surface, prai- 
ries, and flat woods, with the exception of Polk and Citra, 
which are the proud possessors of numerous beautiful, 
clear water lakes, formed by a rather undulating country 
— "high sand hills," as they are termed, only they are 
not really "high" at all, that is, to a resideut of a true 
hill country; but locally the name is correct, although 
non-residents are apt to be misled by its application. High 
hammock, low hammock, high sand hills, flat woods, all 
these are localisms well understood by those acquainted 
with the State. It is not height above the sea that is 
indicated, but location with regard to natural drainage. 



CLIMATE. 47 

Down through the center of Florida runs a decided 
ridge or backbone ; not mountainous, but rising gently 
from the sea-coast on either side until the middle, running 
north and south, is reached, and here at some points the 
''divide" is so sharp that the little streams taking their 
rise in one of the small lakes will flow to the east on one 
side and toward the wxst on the other. 

A phenomenon similar to this was witnessed by the 
writer a few years ago on the summit of the high ridge 
dividing the Isthmus of Panama. There is a space three 
or four feet long where the water in the railroad drain lies 
perfectly still, while at each end it flows rapidly in opposite 
directions, one toward the Atlantic, the other toward the 
Pacific Ocean. 

Crossing Florida's peninsula from east to west, or vice 
versa, is like ascending gradually a series of terraces, the 
one blending into the other, until a gently undulating 
plateau is reached at the highest point, continuing for a 
distance varying from six to twenty or more miles across, 
and then commencing another terraced descent on the 
other side. 

Probably the greatest elevation in Polk Count}^ which 
is the highest in South -Florida, is not over but rather 
under two hundred and thirty-five feet above the sea. 

Passing northward from South Florida we find the face 
of the country gradually changing ; instead of the rolling 
lands being the exception they become the rule ; and not 
only so, but the undulations are more decided, real, genu- 
ine " hills " being frequently found, for here, iii the vicinity 
of the backbone of the State, is its greatest elevation, 
about three hundred feet above the sea. 

While the general opinion prevails that " Florida is low," 
very few are aware of the fact that her highest elevation 
is also that of all the States on the Atlantic coast, their 



48 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

general elevation, with some local exceptions, being act- 
ually less than three hundred feet. 

Florida's average level above the sea, according to To- 
ner's Dictionary of Elevations is sixty feet, while that of 
Louisiana is seventy-five feet ; no very great difference, 
you see, yet no one looks askance at Louisana on that 
account, even though it necessitates the construction and 
maintenance at an immense expense of a levee to keep the 
land from being inundated at times by the '' Father of 
Waters," an' effort, as we all know, not always successful 
either. 

But enough for the present of the surface of Florida. 
We have seen sufficient to prove that, while she has no 
mountain ridge to cool the air with snow and ice and sud- 
den blasts of wind, yet neither can she be justly described, 
as she has so often been by her enemies, as ' ' one vast ex- 
panse of swamps and flat woods." 

"Low," as regards elevation above the sea, in compari- 
son with many countries, Florida undoubtedly is; but 
compare her with some others and her lowest lands become 
high lands. 

Look across the ocean, for instance, at the Old World. 
The valley of Jordan is no less than one thousand feet 
below the level of the Mediterranean Sea. The countries 
lying along the Caspian Sea are lower than its surface; 
and why is it that a large portion of Holland has to be 
defended by a system of dykes against the inroads of the 
waters? Not, surely, because her lands lie higher than 
the waves that beat against her shores. 

Yet these countries we have named are healthy and fer- 
tile, and thickly populated, and no one thinks of casting 
their lowly station in their teeth. 

** Chiefly low, and generally damp and malarial," those 
9,re the words we quoted a while ago as applied to Florida 



CLIMATE. 49 

by a certain professor who had not even done her the jus- 
tice of investigating the truth or crossing her borders. AVe 
have effectually disposed of the first charge, now let us 
attack the second, "generally damp." 

We suppose he meant " humid," as that term applies to 
the atmosphere or climate, while '^ damp " indicates " moist- 
ure" or " slightly wet," and if this quality refers to the 
soil, accompanied by warmth and fertility, it is very far 
from being objectionable to any farmer or fruit-grower. 
Taking humidity, then, to be the word that should have 
been employed as applied to the degree of vapor held in 
the atmosphere and not perceptible to the human senses, 
let us see how it stands. 

Well, in the first place, humidity is by no means un- 
healthy when accompanied by sunshine and fresh air, and 
if these are to be had any where on earth it is in bonnie 
Florida. 

In the second place we will compare the degree of moist- 
ure held in the Florida atmosphere with that of some other 
places, and note how she bears the comparison of scientific 
and authorized facts and figures. 

Here are some items from the Signal Service reports, as 
cases in point : 

The mean humidity for Jacksonville, Punta Rassa, and 
Key West for the five coldest months of the year is 72.7; 
for the same months in the three principal cities of Min- 
nesota the mean was 74.3; while, crossing to Southern 
France, we find the humidity for the same period to be 
72.4 at Cannes and Mentone. That sIioays a difference in 
favor of Florida of 1.6 against Minnesota, and an advan- 
tage of only 0.3 in favor of the French cities, and the dif- 
ference in both these readino;s would have been still more 
upon Florida's side had the observations been taken in the 
interior of the State at a higher altitude instead of, as 

4 



50 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

they were, on her lowest grounds and on the bank of the 
St. John's River and the Gulf of Mexico. As a matter of 
fact the relative humidity of Florida year by year is less 
than that of five out of eight of the most celebrated 
European health resorts. 

The beautiful Tillandsia usneoides, or Spanish moss, 
which adds so much to the beauty and grandeur of our 
Southern forests, and is one of the most admired among 
the many novelties that attract the attention of a new- 
comer, is often quoted as a proof of the excessive moisture 
in Florida's atmosphere. Now it is quite true that in 
those spots where this graceful drapery is found in the 
greatest abundance there is a very moist local atmosphere ; 
note that word, local, for in that lies the explanation of 
the seeming contradiction. Some people have an idea that 
the moss itself creates the dampness^ while in truth it finds 
already there the moisture it requires for its daily food, and 
by living upon it and taking it up out of the air actually 
lessens the amount and so performs valuable sanitary ser- 
vice. Its presence in large quantities — which is always in 
low hammock lands — indicates the existence of super- 
abundant moisture, but has the opposite effect to increas- 
ing it ; and yet it is frequently found scattered about here 
and there, forming a most luxuriant drapery on isolated 
trees, growing on high and dry lands, but here its presence 
is no indication of dampness. The sunshine pours down 
on it all day long, and water may not be any Avhere near 
it, but it thrives, nevertheless, on the same principle that 
one man can live upon less than two. 

The great scientist, Vivenot, has carefully classified the 
degrees of relative humidity as follows : ''It being under- 
stood that here as elsewhere, the basis of all such figures is 
the air saturated so that it can hold no more moisture in 
invisible suspension. This point is marked as one hundred 



CLIMATE. 51 

per cent ; then, if the air of a certain place is only half 
saturated it is marked as fifty per cent ; one quarter sat- 
urated as twenty -five per cent." 

Here then is Vivenot's classification : ' ' Moderately dry, 
56 to 70 ; moderately moist, 71 to 85 ; excessively moist, 
86 to 100." 

We have already seen that the humidity of certain points 
in Florida during the five coldest months is 72.7, which 
just brings it under the heading of "moderately moist." 
But take the whole State and the whole year, and then 
the figures change to 69.6, and this at once places Florida's 
climate where it belongs, under the classification of ' ' mod- 
erately dry." 

She has reason to be thankful that it is not any drier 
than it is, for if her atmosphere contained less moisture 
her greatest charm would be gone. Why, do you ask? 
Simply because a certain amount of moisture is absolutely 
necessary to prevent great and sudden ranges of tempera- 
ture, a thing which is quite as deleterious to health as an 
excess of humidity. 

Who that has sat in a dentist's chair to have a tooth filled 
does not recall with a shudder the intense aching caused by 
the little bellows which dries the cavity to be filled? It 
must be very dry, and it is this absence of moisture, pro- 
ducing an intense cold by rapid evaporation, which causes 
the excess of pain. 

We see the same principle at work in the air. For in- 
stance, if Florida did not possess a certain amount of 
moisture and a consequent deposit of a certain amount of 
dew, then, instead of a night and day variation of 13° or 
14° (often less) in temperature, there would probably be a 
difference of 30° or 40°. 

In the desert of Sahara, where the dryness is absolute 
and radiation at night entirely unrestrained, the tempera- 



5^ HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

ture changes from an almost unendurable heat during the' 
day — 100° or over in the shade — to no less than 32°, the 
freezing point, at night. 

In Upper Egypt the range is 40°, and out on our own 
western prairies there is not infrequently a difference of 
60°, so that one is scorched by day and frozen at night. 

Let us be thankful then that Florida has just enough 
moisture to temper the heat during the day by condensa- 
tion, and during the night by retarding radiation suffi- 
ciently to keep the cold in check. Her climate is just as 
it ought to be to secure health and warmth. 

A few practical, every-day illustrations of the proof of 
our statements, and we close our study of Florida's climate 
so far as humidity goes. 

One of the scientific tests of a "moderately dry" cli- 
mate is the dessication of meats and their slow decomposi- 
tion. Now, it is a fact that causes much surprise to new- 
comers, that beef when hung up in a current of air will 
keep fresh much longer than in the same or even lower 
temperature in the more northern States ; and venison, 
which has naturally less moisture than beef, wall harden 
and dry on the surface and continue good much longer 
than beef. 

Another test is, *' matches will take fire with certainty, 
even in unheated rooms." Here, also, the writer has noted 
a marked difference between, for instance, Maryland, New^ 
Jersey, New York, or Pennsylvania, and Florida, and de- 
cidedly in favor of the latter. It is very seldom indeed 
that a match is found to have absorbed enough moisture 
to crumble or miss fire. 

Unless during the prevalence of several days' rain (an 
infrequent occurrence) ladies find that their hair will re- 
main in crimps or curls for days together ; this, as is well 
known, is an unfailing proof of dry air. 



CLIMATE. 53 

If pianos are kept closed on rainy days when not in use, 
and occasionally thrown wide open — that is, the entire lid 
raised — at other times, little if any trouble is found in 
keeping them in tune, especially in the interior of the 
State, which is very far from being the case in very moist 
countries. 

During the rainy season, from June to August inclu- 
sive, it is difficult to keep table salt dry ; but no more so 
than in the majority of the States under similar circum- 
stances, and the WTiter has frequently seen in Philadelphia 
and New Jersey salt-cellars actually full of liquid salt, but 
never more than very moist in Florida. 

Clothing that has been wet and "salted" with perspira- 
tion, even though dry when taken off at night, will often 
be found quite damp in the morning, the salt having ab- 
sorbed moisture during the night. But clothing not so 
salted, even though left by an open window, will be per- 
fectly dry. Of how many of our States can this be said 
during a long " rainy spell"? 

Even during the rainy season, when showers fall more 
or less copiously every day (the sun shining in the interval), 
the air is not saturated. It never comes under Vivenot's 
classification of " excessively moist," a fact that is proven 
by the continued, though diminished evaporation of water, 
for, as every one knows, this would be an impossibility if 
the atmosphere already contained as much moisture as it 
could hold in suspension. 

In the lower St. John's fogs are quite frequent and 
heavy, but in most other localities they seldom occur, 
and then are light and quickly vanish as the sun rises 
higher. 

And now we hope that the facts we have given so far 
will refute effectually the erroneous idea that generally 
prevails concerning " Florida's moist climate." 



54 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

The charge of unheal thfulness or ''malaria" remains, 
and this too we shall presently lay in its grave, along with 
sundry other untruths and misconceptions, and cover them 
away out of sight forever, from the sight of those who 
peruse these pages. 



HEALTH. 55 

CHAPTER IV. 

HEALTH. 

One of the very first questions that confronts the intend- 
ing settler is that of health, and so it should be, paramount 
to all others ; for what is wealth, or life itself, without the 
capacity for enjoying them ? And we all know from bitter 
experience, either in our own persons or in that of those 
dear to us, that there can be no pleasure, whether in riches 
or in life, if they are accompanied by sickness and pain. 

So in selecting a home the question of its healthfulness 
should be the most important of all. the first and fore- 
most to be considered, even at the possible cost of sacrifice 
in some minor points ; we say minor advisedly, because all 
other points are minor to this, and the wise man will sub- 
ordinate them to it first and last. 

It is a well-known, but none the less to be lamented, 
phase of human nature, that the moment a country or 
individual becomes prominent among the rest, by reason 
of superior merit or advantage, that moment hosts of ene- 
mies, bitter and unscrupulous, arise and assail them with 
a venom born of that ''envy, hatred, malice, and all un- 
charitableness," from whose evil dominion we pray for 
deliverance. 

For years upon years our sunny Florida lay perdue, as 
it were, too humble and insignificant to attract the notice 
of the busy, struggling thousands scattered all over the 
rest of the world. Why this was so is easily understood 
by any one who pauses to look back upon her history, as 
we have seen. Only within a comparatively few years has 
general attention been bestow^ed upon this hidden gem of 
the Union. 



56 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

The cry was, " Go West, young man !" and many a young 
man obeyed ; and some remained rejoicing, and some de- 
parted in a different frame of mind. But enough went, 
and enough continued to follow in their footsteps to enrich 
the laud speculators. And it was like the falling of a 
bomb-shell into their midst when Florida, bonnie Florida, 
with her sunny smile and warmth of welcome, stepped for- 
ward into the light, offering far more than all the much- 
vaunted West could bestow, even after years of toil and 
exposure to the inclement storms of winter and the terrible 
gales of summer. 

And then straightway arose a host of foes, striking 
blindly at the formidable rival looming up so suddenly in 
their pathway. She endangered all their cherished plans, 
and so she must be struck down by slander, falsehood, mis- 
representations, malice, by any and every weapon, so that 
only their end was attained. But it never was, for Florida 
was too powerful in her charms, and truth, like murder, 
'' will out," providing that one searches for it. Yet still, 
as we have seen, a great many are satisfied to accept as 
truth every chance statement they may happen to see or 
hear, whether for or against, without reaching down below 
the surface, much less seeking "at the bottom of the 
well" for it. 

This is the reason why such charges as we have quoted 
in these j)ages gain headway. They are carelessly read, 
and repeated from one to the other, and no one stops to 
ask, '' How much is true? how much is false?" 

We have proven by facts and figures that Florida is not 
" low," in the usual acceptation of the term, and that her 
climate is not "damp," and now let us put to rout that 
other charge, that she is "generally malarial." 

We have dealt it a heavy blow already, for every one 
knows that a ' ' moderately dry " climate, and undulating 



HEALTH. 57 

lands, with distinct ridges here and there, such as we have 
shown Florida to possess, and malaria are antagonistic, and 
that therefore the reign of the latter must be local, and on 
a small scale. We do not for one moment intend to assert, 
or wish it to be believed, that there is no malaria in Flor- 
ida. ' She is "of the earth, earthy;" not. by any means a 
paradise, not without drawbacks nor imperfections ; but 
only better, balancing all things pro and con, than any 
other land we know of. 
/ Yes, Florida has malaria. Can you name a country or 
a State that has it not in some localities ? Can you point 
to districts low, marshy, where vegetation is alternately 
covered by water and exposed to the air and sun, and say 
that such districts are healthy and fit for human habita- 
tions ; that malaria, in all its many phases, finds no foot- 
hold there ? 

If a man chooses to locate his home in such spots as 
these, either in Florida or any other land, when all around 
him are high, dry, healthy lands, then he really deserves 
to lose his health and his life ; but we pity his family, and 
counsel them to rise up in rel^ellion while yet they may. 
We know a man here in Florida, whose home was in the 
pine woods, as healthy a location as could be found any 
where, and his family grew and flourished apace. But 
there came a day when work was offered a few miles away, 
and he preferred taking his family to leaving them at 
home. He rented a house that had been deserted by its 
owner because of the malaria lurking around it. It was 
built in a low, wet place, surrounded by swamp and low 
hammock ; but it was lower in rent, as well as position, 
than any other offering. So the family dwelt in this 
' ' Black Hole " while the husband and father went off to 
his work on a high pine ridge a mile or two away, so that 
the malaria affected himself but little. What was the 



58 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

result? The wife and children were stricken down with 
fever, one of the latter died, and almost another. Then 
they went back to their healthy home with shattered 
health, one and all, and soon the poor wife followed her 
child, thankful to be at rest, yet sorrowful too for those 
who remained behind. And all this did not come of igno- 
rance of the probable results either, but was just a delib- 
erate * ' tempting of Providence " to save a few dollars. 
But when the accounts were footed up, to the two lives lost 
were added also many dollars lost as well. There is a 
moral to this story, and '' He who runs may read," and if 
he is wise, " He who reads will run " from low places every 
where. 

Florida is like every other country on the face of the 
earth ; there are spots totally unsuited to human habita- 
tion, others moderately good, others desirable, and still 
others yet more desirable. 

And yet during the dry winter months even the most 
malarial of these localities become almost healthy, because 
the excess of moisture and the poisonous gases from decay- 
ing vegetation are taken uj) far above the earth by the 
absorbent power of the atmosphere and wafted far away 
by the constant breezes. But during the warm, rainy 
months the decay is too rapid and the moisture too great 
to permit this beneficial factor to do its work so effectually, 
although even then it is still powerful enough as a general 
rule to rob the fever fiend of much of its deadly strength. 

What says the report of the United States Army Sur- 
geon-General : ' ' The statistics of this bureau show that the 
diseases which result from malaria are of a much milder 
type in Florida than in any other State in the Union, and 
the number of deaths there to the number of cases of re- 
mittent fever has been much less than among the troops 
serving in other portions of the United States." 



HEALTH. 59 

Let us glance for a moment at the ratio of deaths from 
remittent fever in the various divisions of the United 
States, and note how they stand the test of official sta- 
tistics. 

In the Middle States there is one death to thirty-six 
cases, in the Northern States one to fifty-two, and in the 
Southern one death to fifty-four cases, the Western States 
not being given. 

So much for these three great divisions. The South has 
the best of it, you see, although such is not the general 
impression. 

And now here are three representative States : In Texas 
the death-rate in remittent fever is one to seventy-eight 
cases, in California one to one hundred and twenty-two, 
and in Florida only one to two hundred and eighty-seven. 

Then taking all diseases together : In New York State 
the ratio is one death out of every two hundred and fifty 
of the population, while in Florida it is only one in four- 
teen hundred. What a contrast ! Yet no one calls New 
York an unhealthy State, neither ' ' low, and generally 
damp and malarial." Why not? If Florida is, then 
New York must be nearly six hundred per cent worse, 
according to the official statistics, and certainly ought to 
be forever quarantined and suppressed. 

It is the usual impression among those not ' ' to the manor 
born " that one or two years of that half-sickness, which is 
harder to bear than a severe illness, is the least that one 
must expect in becoming acclimated to the Southern States. 
Undoubtedly it is true in some localities, but we do not 
believe it is generally so. It is human justice, because one 
member sins to call the whole family sinners. 

At all events we know of our own experience that it is 
not so of Florida. Here it is perfectly safe to come at all 
times of the year. One portion of the writer's family ar- 



60 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

rived at their new Florida home, in the midst of the pines, 
in April, and the remainder in June, yet all from that day 
to this — nearly eleven years — have enjoyed better health 
than they could boast of in their old home. Two who suf- 
fered for years with severe headaches, lasting for days to- 
gether, have not had one such attack since breathing the 
balmy air of Florida. Another, for whom the fiat seemed 
to have gone forth — and indeed had done so — bade farewell 
to hemorrhages and coughs after the first year of the new 
home life, and now is able to get through with no incon- 
siderable amount of literary work. We feel, therefore, 
that we have good reason to love bonnie Florida's sunny 
face, and defend her by telling the truth concerning her. 

With the same amount of prudence, or even less than is 
or ought to be practiced at the North, neither malarial 
fever, nor the less dreaded but decidedly miserable " chills 
and fever," need be feared at all. And it soon comes to 
be noticed by the new settler, that in Florida one's feet 
may get wet time and again with impunity, even from a 
drenching in the rain, if one keeps in motion so as not to 
become chilled before dry clothes can be obtained, and 
that no ill effects are apt to follow. 

It is a matter of daily and increasing wonder to those 
new to the State to note how much more exposure of this 
kind they can endure without injury than they had ever 
before deemed possible in their old homes, be they where 
they might. 

What few fevers there are, as we have seen, are usually 
of a mild type and easily controlled. 

Diphtheria and scarlet fever are almost unknown, and 
cases of pneumonia are rare and seldom fatal. 

Those who suffer from rheumatism and kidney diseases 
are always relieved, and not infrequently cured entirely by 
a continuous residence in this healthful piney woods. 



HEALTH. 61 

As to the benefit accruing to those with lung trouble, 
consumption, asthma, catarrh, we need not speak, for in 
this Florida's reputation is Avorld-wide. 

Children who are racked and nervous, and stand at 
death's door, from the attacks of measles, scarlatina, or 
whooping-cough, almost invariably recover rapidly if they 
are brought to Florida, and that too with little if any med- 
ical treatment. 

In the adult nervous dyspepsia, which is becoming more 
common every year, finds immediate relief and generally 
cure in the quiet, peaceful, out-of-door life of Florida. 

There is one widesj^read disease, for it really amounts to 
that, for which, as Dr. Lente tells us, " Florida affords as 
healing a balm as for the pulmonary variety " of consump- 
tion. Dr. Lente calls it "cerebral consumption," but fifty 
years ago it was described thus by James Johnson, and no 
one can fail to recognize the picture: " There is a condi- 
tion of body, intermediate between sickness and health, 
but much nearer the former than the latter, to which I am 
unable to give a satisfactory name. It is daily and hourly 
felt by tens of thousands, but I do not know that it has 
ever been described. It is not curable by physic, though I 
apprehend it makes much work for the doctors, ultimately, 
if not for the undertakers. It is the wear and tear of the 
living machine, mental and corporal, which results from 
overstrenuous labor and exertion of the intellectual fac- 
ulties rather than of the corporal powers, conducted in 
anxiety of mind and bad air." 

For such as these, victims of nervous prostration, Flor- 
ida does indeed offer a healing balm and a bower of rest 
and quiet. 

Is it not with good reason that we claim for our sunny 
Florida that none need fear to trust their lives in her 
hands, when both facts and figures — the former widely 



62 HOME LIFE IN FLOEIDA. 

known, the latter official — proclaim that *' Florida leads 
the list of healthy States " ? Is not the false charge of 
"generally malarial" dead and buried? 

We have not yet referred to the singular purity of the 
Florida air, a constituent of climate which has not until 
recently been regarded worthy the attention it certainly 
merits. 

The usual idea of "pure air" is simply air that is free 
from disagreeable odors ; but this is so far from being cor- 
rect, that the gases from which these odors emanate are 
the least serious of the impurities of the atmosphere, and 
very seldom exist in sufficient quantities to do any harm 
to human beings. 

Carbonic-acid gas, which is popularly supposed to be 
the most dangerous of all, is rarely found in injurious 
quantities even in a crowded room, and is not in itself 
poisonous. 

What makes the difference between "country air" and 
' ' city air " ? Not, as is generally believed, the presence of 
poisonous gases to an injurious extent in the latter, as ex- 
haled from the multitude of chimneys, workshops, and 
animal bodies, living and dead. 

The celebrated Angus Smith tells us that the amount of 
gases present in the air of a city and in that of the pure 
and unadulterated country are very nearly the same. To 
prove his assertion he makes a calculated statement of the 
actual amount, which overturns one's previous ideas as to 
the relative purity of city and country air. 

For instance. Lake Geneva, in 100 volumes of air, has 
0.439 parts of gas, while in the city of London the analysis 
shows 0.420 in the same amount of air. 

Who has not read with a thrill of horror the sad story 
of the poisonous air of the ' ' Black Hole " of Calcutta, 
where two hundred and sixty out of three hundred pris- 



HEALTH. 63 

oners died like dogs "because they were compelled to 
inhale air poisoned by carbonic-acid gas and destitute of 
oxygen"? But the cause thus given for this wholesale 
slaug-hter is another of those world-wide mistakes that 
modern science is revealing day by day. It has been 
proven of late that these unfortunate men, shut up like 
rats in a trap, without light or ventilation, died not from 
too much carbonic-acid gas or too little oxygen, but from 
the presence of organic matter in the air, diseased germs, 
too minute to be visible, yet all powerful to sow the seeds 
of malaria broadcast, and contaminate all with which they 
came in contact. 

That country air is purer than city air is universally 
conceded, but, as we have just observed, it is not the ab- 
sence of gases to a greater degree in the former that gives 
it the advantage. No, not in the gaseous, but in the solid 
portions of the atmosphere do we find the mischief-maker 
enthroned. 

" It has been established beyond all doubt," says Shroe- 
der, ' ' that these organic substances, be they the gaseous 
products of putrefactive processes in the animal or vegeta- 
ble kingdom, floating in the atmosphere, do reach the lungs 
in the currents of air inspired, and are there capable of 
doing great mischief." 

So we see that it is these germs, or "seeds of disease," 
as they have been appropriately termed, that cause the 
trouble ajid contaminate the air, and these are found, as 
would seem most natural, in much greater quantities in 
the atmosphere of the cities than in that of the country. 
In the one thousands of agencies are at work to produce 
and encourage their presence ; in the other the leaves of 
the trees, the grass, the growing crops, the sparkling river 
or lakes, all serve to keep the air pure and sweet. But of 
course these ' ' seeds of disease " do exist in some localities, 



64 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

even in the open country, for they are the direct cause of 
malarial affections which, be it understood, do not ahvays 
manifest themselves simply as fevers, but assume many 
and varied forms, attacking always the weakest parts of 
the individual. 

Wherever vegetation is undergoing the process of de- 
cay and fermentation, there look out for the breeding 
places of these fatal germs. It does not matter whether 
the locality be north or south, at the equator or the north 
pole, given certain conditions such as the above, and the 
same result will follow. 

There are some places in Canada, and some in New 
York, and some in Pennsylvania, some in California, in 
Texas, in Georgia, in Florida, where we would not build 
our home for all the wealth of the United States, because 
we could not live to enjoy them, neither we nor any one 
else. But these places are self-evident ; no one is comj)elled 
to live there, or even to try to ; there is room enough for 
all in healthy localities. 

Where, however, this presence is known or suspected, a 
thin cotton screen in the windows and doors — cheese-cloth 
for example — will prove a great safeguard, as it has been 
proven by frequent tests that the disease germs can not 
pass through cotton ; the fine loose films catch and hold it. 
This is a fact well worth remembering by those who have 
unhappily ' ' cast their lines " near low, swampy ground, 
where these germs "most do congregate." 

Nor is this cotton screen the only barrier that may be 
interposed between these fatal atoms and their intended 
victims. A thick belt of forest trees or of sunflowers, or 
where the climate is mild enough, the eucalyptus tree, all 
these serve as efficient body-guards and hold the enemy in 
check. This is especially true of the latter tree, which 
acts iu a double manner; first, by evaporating moisture 



HEALTH. 65 

from the soil, for there is no other that is such a ''hard- 
drinker" as the eucalyptus tree, and consumes such large 
quantities of water ; and, second, the peculiar aroma which 
exhales from its leaves seems to possess the qualities of an 
antiseptic, and destroys all the seeds of disease that come 
within its influence. 

There is a. district in Persia, reaching for miles back 
from the banks of a river, a district large and exceedingly 
fertile. Until twelve years ago it was esteemed an ac- 
cursed spot, and was shunned as a pest-house, because no 
one could live — all died — who sought to dwell there. But 
now it is all changed as by magic. The king ordered 
eucalyptus trees to be planted thickly along the river 
banks, and in groups here and there all over the district, 
and nobly they did the work they were set to do. They 
grew rapidly, as they have a way of doing, and drained 
the excess of moisture, w^hile the aroma from their leaves 
killed the disease germs floating in the air. The whole 
district is thickly populated now, and no part of Persia 
is more healthy than this. 

So this shows, one instance among many, what the euca- 
lyptus can do for humanity. Better than a drug store, a 
doctor, or a watch-dog is a grove of these trees around a 
house where the malaria fiend lurks near by. 

Until the discovery of these germs in the air it was a 
matter of increasing perplexity as to why some diseases 
should rage with violence in certain localities, and in 
others adjoining be almost unknown ; often, too, being 
most violent, as in diphtheria or scarlet fever or cholera, in 
the homes of the wealthier classes where one would least 
expect to find them. But when the existence of the dis- 
ease germs and the cause of their presence in greater or 
less quantities became known the mystery was solved. In 
the better class homes, where water-pipes, drains, and sinks 

5 



66 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

were improperly made or allowed to become uncleanly, 
the malaria fiend grew and flourished, and performed its 
deadly work unsuspected, while in the humbler homes 
these breeding places were missing. 

It was also found that experiments on the air from differ- 
ent places, but all of them ''country air," gave different 
results. Sometimes the same methods used for the de- 
struction of the germs failed to have that effect. This was 
the case with the air of Florida, taken from various local- 
ities away from the low or swampy lands or along the low 
margins of lakes or rivers. Why? Because the germs 
were not there to be killed ; because the air was absolutely 
pure, in its deepest and widest sense. 

In the low hammocks or wherever decaying vegetation 
lay on the surface of the ground, there, as must be ex- 
pected, the malaria fiend was discovered, ' ' seeking whom 
he might devour," stronger in summer than in winter, but 
seldom, as we have seen, as powerful here for evil as in 
other similar localities, because of the lack of excess of 
moisture to feed upon. 

But in the undulating lands, or even in the flat woods, 
where the soil is sandy and the tall pine tree towers aloft, 
as it does on more than three fourths of the land surface 
of the State, where the lakes have clear, sandy shores, 
there the malaria fiend meets his death the moment he 
seeks to enter the charmed circle. 

One of the most important factors both in producing 
and in preserving the remarkable purity of the Florida 
atmosphere is her much-abused '' sandy soil," which has so 
often been held triumphantly aloft by her enemies, to be 
pointed at in ridicule, as an evidence of the falsity of her 
claims to luxurious vegetable production. 

For the character of the soil has a very great influence 
on the health or otherwise of those who dwell upon it, and 



HEALTH. 67 

on the purity of the air that surrounds them. A clay soil 
that retains too much moisture, or one that will not retain 
it at all, are equally injurious and detrimental to health. 

In his '' Manual of Practical Hygiene," Parkes, the cele- 
brated scientist, uses these words : ' ' Sand absorbs very little, 
clay ten or twenty times more, and humus, or common sur- 
face soil, more than forty or fifty times as much as sand." 

]^ow, when we consider that it is the excess of moisture 
lying on or near the surface that causes vegetable decay, 
and that the latter is the most powerful agent in breeding 
the malaria germ, we see at once why it is that the latter 
holds high carnival wherever soils retentive of moisture 
are found. And, considering further that a certain amount 
of moisture is absolutely necessary to preserve health and 
a moderate equality of climate, we perceive also why soils 
impervious to moisture are inimical to human life. 

Well may Parkes remark that * ' the sands are therefore 
the healthiest soils in this respect." 

It is evident then that a permeable soil is the most health- 
ful soil, and nowhere in the world is this quality more 
prominent than on the sandy surface of Florida, which, 
however, be it noted in passing, is not only and all sand 
pure and simple, but disintegrated rock, finely comminuted 
shell, coral, lime, and other productive ingredients. 

Dust is another factor in produciug disease, Avhose influ- 
ence is too often overlooked and underestimated. 

On clay or humus or surface soils, the element of dust, 
when they are dry, is ever present and ready to rise up 
into baleful activity on the slightest provocation, as a 
breath of wind, or even a passing footfall of man or beast. 

And here is another of Florida's safeguards. Her soil 
is generally sandy, and sand produces dust fine enough to 
be held in suspension in the air in such small quantities as 
to become immaterial as to any harm it can do. There is 



6S HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

less of that " impalpable dust," the taste of which we all 
know, because we have all been compelled to breathe it 
more or less, there is less of this prevailing lung-irritant 
in Florida than in any other country we know of. 

So we see that our bonnie Florida has cause to bless the 
sands that lie so thickly scattered over her bosom ; to their 
' sanitary work she owes no small part of her superlative 
healthfulness. 

Quite as important as any other point in the selection of 
a home that will be a healthy one is that of the water-sup- 
ply. For water, good, bad, or indifferent, must be had. 
It is one of the things that a family must have, no matter 
what else they have not. Water and air — we can no more 
dispense with the one than with the other. That Florida 
has an abundance of the latter, pure and wholesome, we 
have already seen. Now, how about the water ? This too 
must be pure and sweet, for there is no source more fruitful 
of disease than bad water. Says an eminent physician, * ' Did 
people know the nature and extent of the terrible impuri- 
ties in the water they drink they would wonder that they 
are still alive." 

Medical men every where assert that the vast majority 
of diseases are directly traceable to the results of some 
sporadic germ, unseen, unsuspected, unknown, but none 
the less surely existing, and by some means, either of air 
or water, drawn into the human system, and of these two 
means of conveyance the most powerful factor is the water 
we drink. 

No one who has arrived at the age of maturity needs a 
physician to tell him that water which contains vegetable 
organic matter or minerals, like salts or lime for example, 
will cause dysentery or diarrhea. » 

But while this fact is generally known, there is another 
equally true, but so recently proven as not yet to be uni- 



HEALTH. 69 

versally admitted; that is, that impure water may also 
cause malarial fevers, aud not only may but does fre- 
quently so cause them to a greater extent than any other 
one factor. 

If a certain place is known to have malaria in the air 
during the summer months because of conditions which do 
not exist in the winter season, all danger would be consid- 
ered as passed so soon as the cold winter set in. And just 
here is where many a serious mistake has been made. Be- 
cause the winter air does not contain the malarial germs, 
that is no proof that they are not still dangerously near. 
The water of that contaminated spot holds within itself 
the seeds of disease, and these are just as active in winter 
as in summer. Impure water is always dangerous, and 
fevers induced by its use are more fatal than others. 

Those who drink water coming from marshes, whether 
in Florida or elsewhere, will be subject to fevers at all 
times of the year, while those who are careful to drink 
only pure, clean water, even in malarial districts, very 
rarely have fever outside of the late summer or autumn, 
and then the water is not responsible. This has been re- 
peatedly proven in all parts of the world, and is a fact well 
worthy of note, dwell where we may. 

In respect to her water-supply Florida as a general rule 
is favored, as she is in most other things. In most locali- 
ties, whether drawn from lake, river, spring, or well, her 
waters are "soft," that is, destitute of lime, and for all 
purposes as pleasant to use as rain-water. In a few less 
favored spots, however, the well-water is "hard," being 
charged with lime and magnesia, an excellent drink for 
growing children, who need these bone-making materials, 
but hardly so desirable in other ways. 

There is a difference in "hard" water wells. Some are 
charged with magnesia and sulphate of lime, and others 



70 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

with magnesia and carbonate of lime ; the one is perma- 
nently hard and utterly intractable, crying out, " The more 
you try me the more I won't come — soft ;" the other is 
more obedient and only temporarily hard. But under- 
stand when we say ' ' temporarily " we do not mean that the 
character of the water in the well itself is subject to change, 
that it fluctuates, and is sometimes hard and sometimes soft ; 
not this at all, but only that by certain processes the hard- 
ness may be removed and the water rendered as soft as rain- 
water. Of course there is a reason for this. The sulphate 
of lime contained in the permanently hard water is deserted 
by it and becomes one of its constituents, and then when 
you rub soap in it the stearic acid in the latter combines 
with the lime and magnesia and forms a chemical comj)ound 
that the water can not dissolve, and so instead of a pleasant 
cleaning lather, an ugly, disagreeable curdiness results. 

On the other hand, the carbonate of lime, which is 
found in the temporarily hard water, is not, and can 
not be dissolved, like the sulphate, by pure water, and 
hence it is only held in suspension, not permeating or 
becoming an inseparable constituent of the water. 

How does the carbonate get there, then, you ask ? The 
explanation is simple; all natural waters, but especially 
those obtained from wells or springs, contain more or less 
carbonic-acid gas in a state of absorption, and when thus 
charged are capable of dissolving the carbonates. 

Thus we see that, while pure water will not dissolve the 
carbonates, water that contains a certain proportion of 
carbonic-acid gas will do so. But expel the latter gas, 
and the carbonate will be at once precipitated. This ex- 
pulsion is easily accomplished by boiling, and the incrus- 
tation found at the bottom and sides of the kettle show^s 
what has become of the carbonate. Try the water now, 
and you will find it soft and fit for any purpose. 



HEALTH. 71 

Boiling, however, is not the only way to treat this class 
of waters ; stir into a tubful of it a little slaked lime, and 
allow it to settle ; in ten or twelve hours, perhaps less, 
there will be a white deposit at the bottom of the tub, and 
the water will be almost as soft as rain-water. How and 
why? Because the lime you added combined with the 
free carbonic-acid gas and destroyed it, and then the car- 
bonate, being insoluble in w^ater without the presence of 
this gas, was precipitated to the bottom of the tub. 

Where hard water is encountered, either in Florida 
or elsewhere, these simple tests will prove which sort 
it is, and if they render the water soft, the well owner 
may rejoice in having the less intractable servant of the 
two. 

Some scientists aver that rain-water is the only safe 
water to use any where, and even that only after being 
filtered ; this is doubtless true in part, that is, as regards 
some sections of country, but it does not apply to Florida 
as a rule, although in a few exceptional cases it maybe 
found the safest to use for drinking purposes. 

Almost all over the State, however, the chief supply is 
obtained from wells, and purer, more crystal-like water no 
one need wish for. 

As to the depth at which it will be found, that depends 
entirely upon circumstances, whether the spot selected for 
the well lies much higher than the level of the surround- 
ing country, or lower, or whether dug in the wet or dry 
season. 

It is always better, when possible, to have it sunk to- 
ward the end of the latter, or winter season, as then the 
water is at its lowest level, and the maximum depth of the 
well can be reached at once ; otherwise several deepenings 
will be necessary, or the well will "go dry" as the waters 
recede in the lakes and streams. 



72 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Generally, Florida wells are cased with yellow pine 
boards, because they are every where obtainable; but 
where other material can be procured w^e would strongly 
advise against this. 

The objections are, first, non-durability ; every three or 
four years a new casing is required, the boards rotting 
away ; and if not carefully watched, or repairs are post- 
poned, a heavy shower is apt to ' ' cave in " the well. 

Sometimes the rotting of the casing is so complete and 
sudden that nothing can be done except to fill in the well 
and make a new one elsewhere. 

The pine boards generally used are not heavy enough ; 
that is the chief trouble ; instead of half or three quarters 
of an inch, let them be at least two inches thick, and then, 
if they must be employed in the absence of preferable 
material, they will at least last long enough to pay for the 
work done on them. 

The second objection is, fortunately, one that does not 
continue very long, not over a month or two, if the 
well is emptied of its water two or three times in this 
interval ; we refer to the taste of the turpentine in 
the yellow pine, which, until it has all passed out into 
the water, causes the latter to foam and to taste and 
smell decidedly unpleasant ; this is true, however, in a 
much lessened degree where the lumber used has been 
seasoned by exposure to wdnd and water for some weeks 
or months. 

But where lumber just sawed is employed, as is usually 
the case, it will shorten the turpentine period greatly if 
the boards as soon as received are immersed in the waters 
of a lake or stream (one or the other is most likely to be 
at hand), and left there for several days, or longer if pos- 
sible; a large portion of the turpentine taste and odor 
will be got rid of in this way. 



HEALTH. 73 

Now, however, that our beautiful State is being trav- 
ersed in all directions, further and further day by day, 
with the wonder-working rails of steel, and great throbbing 
steamers, speeding over land and water, the days of yellow 
pine casings, like many other things tolerated of necessity 
in the past, are rapidly passing away, except in localities 
far from transportation lines, and these are not so many, 
even now. 

Artesian wells, with their iron pipes, circular wells, 
bricked or cemented, these are the coming wells of Flor- 
ida, furnishing pure, clear water from the very first of 
their being. 

Settlers who have been accustomed all their lives to the* 
free use of ice during the warm months find the summer 
temperature of the Florida water-supply one of the great- 
est crosses they have to encounter in their new homes; 
they get used to it after a while, but where ice can not be 
had to cool it, and either spring-water at a temperature of 
80°, or well-water, if drawn from as much as thirty feet 
below the surface, at about 70°, is all one can get to 
quench thirst, the contrast at first is hard to bear. 

The writer found it so years ago, when there were no 
ice factories in the State ; but there are many now, and 
but few places on the line of transportation where ice can 
not be procured, and that, too, at very reasonable rates, 
from one half to one cent per pound. 

While the Florida waters are generally pure, it does not 
by any means follow that they are so because they look 
clear and have no unpleasant taste or odor ; this is usually 
considered the test, but never was a greater mistake made. 

Water, not only here, but any where, may possess these 
qualities, and yet be utterly unfit for use, because contain- 
ing the germs of disease in mineral ingredients, and other 
water, like that of the St. John's and Ocklawaha rivers, 

7 



74 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

for instance, may be tinged brown or yellow, because it has 
percolated through vegetable matter, and yet be whole- 
some, especially to those who are accustomed to its use. 

Place nothing on the same side of the house with the 
well that can possibly pollute its Avater ; do not rely on the 
soil acting as a filter to the water before it reaches the well ; 
if you do, you make a mistake that may prove fatal to one 
or more of your family. 

Hear what the National Board of Health, of New York, 
has to say on this subject, after a series of careful experi- 
ments, and their report, we may add, only confirms the 
opinion of every sanitarian in the civilized world, and 
proves that natural soil, w^hile it is a good filter for im- 
pure air, is worthless where water is concerned : 

* ' From these results it appears that sand interposes 
absolutely no barrier between wells and the bacterial in- 
fections from cesspools, cemeteries, etc., lying even at 
great distances in the lower wet stratum of sand. And 
it appears probable that a dry gravel, or possibly a dry, 
very coarse sand interposes no barrier to the free entrance 
into houses built upon them, of these organisms, which 
swarm in the ground air around leaky drains," etc. Other 
experiments have shown that ground air will take up in- 
fectious germs from water that is disturbed. 

And here, from a physician resident in the State, comes 
still another warning : 

" If you have a well for household purposes near orange 
trees, do not fertilize with commercial manures ; such trees 
should have only cotton seed, tobacco leaf, or pure chem- 
icals to feed upon. Animal fertilizers of any kind will 
yield a poison to the water through our porous soils. You 
can not be too careful, with our light soil, how you contam- 
inate the surface of the ground about your wells. Bad 
water is a fruitful source of bowel troubles. Our water 



HEALTH. fS 

here can not be excelled, and let us see that we keep it 
sweet and pure." 

It is an easy matter to test the purity of water, no mat- 
ter whence drawn, and here is the modus opermidi : Fill 
a pint bottle three quarters full of the water ; dissolve in 
it one half teaspoonful of the best white sugar ; set it away 
in a warm place for forty-eight hours. If the water be- 
comes cloudy it is unfit to drink ; if not, you are perfectly 
safe in using it freely. 

There are also some safeguards that it is well to know. 

The use of lemon juice or citric acid, even in the pro- 
portion of one two-thousandth part, will destroy any mi- 
croscopic animalcules that may be in the water, and in 
about three minutes from the time the citric acid is used 
they Avill be found dead at the bottom of the vessel. 

But bear in mind the citric-acid solution must be freshly 
made, or it will lose its power. 

This citric acid would be an excellent thing for tourists 
or hunting parties, and still better is a filter that is within 
the reach of every one, light and portable, and always 
ready for use. 

For such a filter as this, which is also very cheap and 
perfectly effective, we are indebted to the State Geologist 
of New Jersey; here are the directions he gives: "It is 
the bottle filter, and is made by tying a string wet with 
turpentine around the bottom of a quart bottle and break- 
ing out the bottom. This is done by lighting the string, 
and, when the flame has encircled the bottle, dipping it in 
cold water. Layers of fine cotton batting must then be 
placed in the bottle until a wad is collected that rests on 
the shoulders of the bottle and its neck. Now dissolve a 
cup of alum in hot water and pour the solution into a cup 
of cold water. This makes a filtering substance. I use 
alum, because it is the only thing which will precipitate 



?6 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

all the impurities of the water to the bottom. For every 
gallon of water that it is desired to purify, add a teaspoon- 
ful of the filtering fluid, and stir it until every particle of 
the auimalculse is precipitated. This usually takes five 
minutes. Then run your gallon of water thus treated 
through the filter, and you will have your water free from 
all impurities." 

To make a filter with a wine barrel, procure a piece of 
fine brass wire cloth of a size suflficient to make a partition 
across the barrel. Support this wire cloth with a coarser 
wire cloth under it, and also a light frame of oak, to keep 
the Avire cloth from sagging. Fill in upon the wire cloth 
about three inches in depth of clear, sharp sand; then 
two inches of charcoal broken finely, but no dust ; then 
on the charcoal four inches of clear, sharp sand. Fill up 
the barrel with water, and draw from the bottom. 

Sometimes, after heavy rains, the well-water is found to 
have sediment in it ; in such cases drop into it powdered 
alum, in the proportion of one tablespoonful to a hogs- 
head of water. 

Or, if alum is not at hand, borax will do, two ounces to 
about twenty barrels of water. 

In either case stir the water for a few moments, and the 
impurities will in a few hours settle to the bottom, but 
more entirely so with the alum than with the borax. 
Neither afiects the taste of the water. 

We have been thus minute in dealing with this subject, 
not because the settler is at all likely to have any trouble in 
procuring pure water, for, as we have said, this is only so in 
Florida in exceptional localities, but rather on the principle^ 
that " an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." 

The sugar test will quickly settle the matter of pure or 
impure water ; not one in one hundred will find it the 
latter. 



TEMPERATUKE— WINTER. 77 

CHAPTER V. 

TEIMPERATURE — WINTER. 

And now we come to the last phase of the constituents 
of climate as regards fair Florida — a phase upon which Ave 
have not so far touched, yet one which is more frequently 
quoted, and to the superficial observer or tourist is more 
important than any other, as more directly affecting one's 
physical comfort — and that is, temperature. 

It is this feature that is usually meant when passing 
allusions are made to the Florida climate ; it is this that 
is called ''charming," "incomparable," "glorious," "de- 
lightful." 

These are the adjectives most frequently met with as 
applied to this subject, and, strong as they are, we think 
few who have experienced in their own persons the strik- 
ing contrast between the climate of Florida and that of 
any other State, nay, of any other known country, will 
object to them as being too expressive. 

Certain it is that thousands do indorse them, and among 
these is the writer, who, having spent in Florida ten con- 
secutive summers and winters, with better health and more 
uniform comfort than any preceding years at the North, 
ought to be in a position to judge somewhat of their jus- 
tice. 

Florida's climate compared with perfection is not per- 
fect, but compared with other climates it is perfect, and 
nothing less ; no other can approach it, as we have previ- 
ously shown. 

Florida's temperature is not monotonous, not equable. 

The time has been, and not so long ago either, when 
this fact would have condemned her in the eves of med- 



78 HOME LIFE IN FLOEIDA. 

ical men, for it was then considered that equability of 
temperature was, for an invalid, one of the first and fore- 
most points to be insisted upon. 

But all that is changed now-a-days, like many other 
things, as science advances, undoing and correcting our 
views and our knowledge. 

Says a distinguished English physician, *'A long resi- 
dence in a very equable climate is not favorable to health, 
even with all the advantages of exercise in the open air : 
a moderate range of temperature and of atmospheric 
variation seem to be necessary for the preservation of 
health." 

And another recent authority asserts, in speaking of the 
dread that persons in weak health experience of cold 
weather : 

*'If our invalids could indeed find a lotus-eater's land, 

" In which it seemed always afternoon, 
All around the coast the languid air did swoon, 

I would predict that the results on their health w^ould 
be rather pernicious than otherwise, and loss of appetite 
and diarrhea would probably be induced." 

Now, just here is the difference between Florida and 
Africa, or the West Indies : the one is semi-tropical, the 
others are wholly tropical ; the one has decided changes of 
temperature, the others have none — it is always the same, 
an unchanging, wearying heat, the only variation being 
from the wet to the dry seasons. 

No, we do not claim that Florida's climate is entirely 
equable; on the contrary, we should regret very much 
having to admit that it was so: happily, we can "hold 
fast to the truth" and yet deny it emphatically; from the 
northern to the southern boundary, even down to the 
extreme point of Dade County, the temperature changes 



TEMPERATURE — WINTER. 79 

decidedly, according to the seasons ; there is nothing mo- 
notonous or debilitating about it. 

And yet these variations are rarely violent, as they so 
frequently are in all other countries; they are not of a 
nature to produce illness from exposure, or sudden shocks 
to the system, but, on the contrary, are entirely bene- 
ficial, even to the most delicate, acting as a wholesome, 
stimulating tonic rather than the contrary ; it is the ab- 
sence of these changes which, as we have seen, render 
tropical climates so enervating and ultimately injurious. 

The usual range of temperature for Florida during the 
day, according to observations carefully conducted for 
more than forty years by Government officials, is only 
13° to 14°; and for the night season only a little more; 
it changes just enough to be refreshing, seldom more or 
less. 

The ideas that until recently obtained almost universal 
credence, and are still prevalent to a great extent regard- 
ing the mildness of a Florida winter, may be summed up 
in the often-heard phrase, " No winter clothing required." 

And this is hardly to be wondered at when some of the 
most prominent land companies scatter broadcast over the 
country pamphlets containing such sentences as these: 
' ' You can live in comfort all winter in tents ; " " You 
need not bring your winter overcoats, it will only be an 
incumbrance;" "'No carpets required^ hence a great ex- 
pense saved." 

And these and others also claim that bananas, pine- 
apples, grapes, limes, and other tender plants can be 
raised to profit, even almost to the northern border, and 
" need no winter protection." 

There is exactly one grain of truth in these statements, 
the last one quoted ; for certainly the plants mentioned 
*'need no winter protection" in the sections indicated, 



80' HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

because it would do no good ; tropical fruits can not be 
grown with profit in regions swept every winter by air 
that is frosty, even if it does not actually touch the freez- 
ing point. 

Florida is over four hundred miles long, and her tem- 
perature varies more from one degree to another than is 
usual for equal distances on the main land ; plants that 
will flourish in ordinary winters as far north as Orange 
County, for instance, are unreliable for crops a little fur- 
ther north, and regularly, winter killed yet a little more to 
the north. 

Some poor, deluded people were actually trying to 
' ' live in comfort all winter in tents " down on the 
Gulf coast at the very time that the unprecedented cold 
wave of January, 1886, came rushing down from the 
north pole on its way to astonish Cuba ; these good 
people had not been very happy before this cold wave 
interviewed them ; they felt still sadder (and madder) 
afterward, and it was not long before, learning wisdom 
by experience, they had good substantial walls and roofs 
to shelter them and good honest fires to warm them, and 
then for the first time they ceased to regret and began to 
rejoice that they had selected Florida as their future home. 
Others too had followed directions and left behind them 
the comfortable winter overcoat and the cosy carpets 
which they were not to require, and even before those few 
bitterly cold days they found out how little dependence is 
sometimes to be placed in flaming circulars set afloat by 
interested parties. 

Those few days in January, 1886 (w^hich will never be 
forgotten by the many who, in person or in property, felt 
the force of the blast), are not to be set down to the ac- 
count of the Florida climate, or their eflTects quoted as 
those of even an "unusually severe winter," as this is 



TEMPEKATURE — WINTER. 81 

commonly experienced ; it was simply something abnor- 
mal, outside altogether, a fierce incursion into an un- 
offending country by an armed horde of marauders from 
the north pole, who carried destruction in their path 
over the whole United States, and even invaded Cuba 
and Europe. 

The ' ' January freeze " has no more to do with the 
climate of Florida than the bursting of a reservoir, or 
the flooding of a river, or the horrors of a cyclone have 
to do with the usual characteristics of any country in 
which these misfortunes may chance to occur in the 
course of the passing years. 

It was literally a ' ' passing strange " experience for 
fair Florida, and while its injurious effects will quickly 
pass away its salutary lessons will forever be remembered. 

And now, that we may have a full and clear idea of 
the actual winter temperature, as Florida winters ordi- 
narily run one with another, let us look at some of the 
facts and figures collected by years of observation by 
scientific men : 



Jacksonville, . . . 
St. Augustine, . . . 

Palatka, 

Indian Kiver, . . . 
Florida (average), 



Autumn. 


Winter. 


70° 


56° 


71° 


58° 


70° 


57° 


62° 


60° 


71° 


60° 



These figures, as you will see, refer to different parts of 
the State. How do they compare with the autumns and 
winters elsewhere? Surely not to Florida's disadvantage. 

Let us examine more in detail into the actual tempera- 
ture of this famous winter of 1886, which was the most 
severe all through of any ever experienced in the State, 
and not at all likely to recur during the lifetime of its 
present population. 



82 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

From observations taken during 124 days, from No- 
vember to March, we find that the highest point reached 
by the thermometer was 87° and the lowest (for two days 
only) 16° ; this latter, of course, during the reign of the 
* ' cold wave " king. 

There were 102 days when the maximum temperature 
was between 55° and 80° ; there were 89 days when the 
lowest point ranged between 34° and 54° ; several more 
when the minimum was 70°, and only three when it was 
cold enough to freeze water at noon. Of sunshiny days 
during this same period there were no less than 82 ; 
showery days, 28 ; cloudy, 13 ; rain all day, 4. 

Now this is the daily record of the most unpleasant 
winter Florida has ever known. What do you think of 
its contrast to that of the mildest winter at the North? 

Note also the fact that these temperature markings were 
made at Jacksonville, and that the record further south 
would show still higher points. 

As an ordinary thing the Florida autumn and winter 
weather is very like the typical May or September of the 
North, or the famous " Indian Summer," which every one 
calls "delightful." 

The mornings and evenings are cool enough as a rule 
to make a brisk wood fire quite cosy and comfortable, and 
sometimes for several days together it is very acceptable 
all day long ; in truth, necessary to comfort. 

And then again there are times, many of them, when 
no fire at all is wanted, but rather summer clothing out- 
side the heavy under flannels that wise people wear, even 
though it be balmy Florida ; we have dressed at Christ- 
mas tide in thin white outer garments, and again in heavy 
blue flannels. 

*' Variety is the spice of life," and it is this very quality 
that saves Florida's climate from being enervating. 



TEMPERATURE — WINTER. 83 

In ordinary winters, days when the thermometer reaches 
a maximum of 76° are not rare, but those in which the 
highest point is 60° or 65° are more frequent, while a 
minimum of 40° is of common occurrence, but these 
variations are seldom so sudden as to be violent, and 
when they are it is the chilling northwest wind that is 
responsible, rushing down without warning or welcome, 
with a snow storm at its back and a rain storm for Flor- 
ida in its hand. 

There has been a great deal of foolishness, both written 
and spoken, about something that does not exist in our 
beautiful State — "the frost line." It is true that some 
sections and some localities are less liable to damage from 
this cause than others, but none can claim certain and 
uniform exemption, if they ''cling to the truth." 

The frost weaves that occasionally sweep across the State 
are erratic — they travel by no known route, are governed 
by no known law. 

For instance, a few years ago, during the march of one 
of these unwelcome visitors, the thermometer at Tampa 
marked 39°, while at Fernandina, two hundred miles fur- 
ther north, it recorded at the same day and hour 54°. 

During the same cold wave tomato vines in Alachua 
County on the north side of a lake were uninjured, while 
those over two hundred miles farther south, with water 
protection, were killed outright. 

Experience has abundantly proven that the effect of 
cold is dependent on currents of air, and is much modified 
by water protection. There is no use in trusting to lines 
of latitude for exemption, for they wdll surely fail some- 
times ; a frost that visits a locality one time and spares 
another close by, may do the opposite on its next visit. 

The " frost line" is a myth, and if any claim to be uni- 
formly "below it" in Florida " the truth is not in them." 



84 HOME LIFE IN FLOKTDA. 

SUMMER. 

If there is any one point concerning Florida which is 
subject to more misapprehensions than any other, it is that 
of her summer climate. Ninety-nine persons out of a 
hundred would at once jump at the conclusion that a cli- 
mate which is so much milder than that of others during 
the winter, must be correspondingly hotter during the 
summer season. 

But put the question to those who live in Florida all 
the year round, "What of the climate in summer?" and 
the answer will be, " In winter the climate is pleasant, in 
summer it is delightful." 

This is the almost universal verdict of all who spend a 
summer or two in the State ; astonishment at first, then 
delight. 

When the mildness of the winter is taken into consid- 
eration, and also the fact that the line of latitude in- 
cluded in Florida is also that embraced by 'Northern 
Africa and a part of the Desert of Sahara, where, as 
we have seen, the temperature ranges during the day 
about 100° in the shade and falls to freezing at night, it 
is not to be wondered at that the Florida summer should 
be regarded with suspicion by those who judge from the 
process of natural induction and are without knowledge 
of the facts. 

Those who know Florida at all, are well aware that no 
such heated air as reigns perpetually during the day over 
the Sahara ever sweeps, even transiently, over fair Florida. 

The same peculiar location of our treasured peninsula 
which influences the winter temperature has also its effect 
upon the summer. The very fact that it is a peninsula, 
w^ith a great ocean to the east and south and a mighty 
gulf to the west, tells its own tale if one but pauses to 



TEMPERATURE — SUIMMER. 85 

interpret it, for it is simply impossible that such a long, 
narrow strip of land, its shores bathed by a great body of 
water on three sides and constant winds sweeping over it, 
their extremes tempered by its influence, should be either 
as cold or as hot as land in the same latitude not so lo- 
cated. 

In the winter the winds passing over the Gulf-stream 
before touching the land lose a great portion of their 
sharpness ; during the summer the current of cold water 
that passes between the east coast and the Gulf-stream, 
tempers and cools the warm air sweeping across it. 

That is one reason why Florida is so favored in summer 
as well as in winter. Another (that also operates in the 
latter season, as we have already noted) is the absence of 
neighboring mountains to check the constant and even 
circulation of the air. The result is that Florida is never 
without a breeze, morning, noon, or night ; first from the 
one great body of outlying waters, then from the other, a 
constant succession of pure, life-giving breezes are playing 
back and forth over her broad bosom. Of all the many 
summers the writer has spent in Florida, the first unbear- 
ably hot day or night has yet to appear ! 

We do not claim that Florida summers are not warm, 
very warm in the sun or in violent exercise, just as else- 
where, but we do claim, and ninety-nine out of a hun- 
dred of her citizens will bear us out in the assertion, that 
her summer is more pleasant and less oppressive than that 
of any other State, north or south. 

Who has not suffered from the oppressive heat of the 
northern summer season with the thermometer ranging 
high up among the nineties, and not a breath of air stir- 
ring to cool the fevered pulse and throbbing head ! 

In our own old home, Philadelphia, we have many a 
time marked the thermometer at 96°, 98°, 100°; even 



SQ HO^IE LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

occasionally 104°, and this too in the shelter and shade 
of the interior of a large brick dwelling, where it should 
have been cool if any where; we have seen the same 
thing also in other parts of Pennsylvania, in New Jer- 
sey, in New York, in Maryland, and with it all there was 
a close, sultry ' ' feel " in the air that seemed to sap one's 
life away and to make the very effort of breathing too 
great for endurance. 

Even in the country, with open fields all around us and 
a great river near by, we have experienced, night after 
night, heat so intense, so close, that it seemed as if we 
must suffocate; sleep, rest even, was impossible, and 
while wandering over the house in the vain hope of 
finding a "shadow of a breeze," Ave have noted our 
neighbors wanderiug likewise in the dead of night about 
their gardens, looking more like uneasy ghosts than 
merely unhappy mortals, slowly melting away in the 
vain search for a breeze. 

That is a search that no one need ever take in Florida ; 
it is more of a problem how to get out of the breeze than 
how to get into it ; it is always on the qui vive and never 
waits to be hunted for ; it hunts for you in every crack 
and corner. - 

It frequently happens that it is too cool to sit on the 
porches in comfort when the thermometer actually marks 
90° or 92°, and common sense tells you that you ought to 
be feeling very warm, and would be excessively so with 
the same temperature in any other State. 

It looks mysterious, does it not ? but it is true, nor is 
the mystery very deeply hidden. 

In Florida during all the long summer the thermometer 
and the breeze are perpetually warring wdth each other ; 
they quarrel night and day, and have a lively time to- 
gether, to the incalculable benefit of all living creatures. 



TEMPERATURE — SUMMER. 87 

The thermometer says one thing, the breeze says an- 
other ; for instance, the former declares the true marking 
to be 96°, the latter insists that it is not over 82°, and 
hardly that. And the breeze is nearer the truth, at least 
so we should decide did we consult our feelings rather 
than the thermometer. 

The reason is self-evident if one stops to think about it ; 
when we have no ice and want to cool some water to drink 
we set it in the shade and in the breeze ; the latter passing 
over it causes a rapid evaporation that at once produces 
the desired effect. 

Exactly in the same way the breeze striking a moist 
skin produces that sensation of coolness which is so re- 
freshing and so vainly sought for when there is no such 
kindly, stirring friend near by. 

We have never once seen the thermometer in Florida 
rise higher than 98°, and that only two or three times, in 
the hottest part of the day, and even then the gentle 
breeze that never fails cools the heated air like an im- 
mense, invisible fan, so that it is not oppressive or a 
source of discomfort ; unlike the North, there are cool 
places to be found in plenty, so long as you keep in the 
shade and at rest. 

Of course it is hot in the sun. Was there ever a sum- 
mer any where where it was not? If there is such a 
place, woe unto its grains, its grasses, its fruits. 

Yes, the Florida sun is hot during the hot season, but 
not one whit more so than elsewhere. 

And men, white men, unaccustomed to such work are 
seen toiling in the full glare of the sun, and declaring that 
they feel the heat less than if they had been quietly ram- 
bling along the road at their old homes with the thermom- 
eter at the same height. 

It is a fact that men are able to work out-doors in the 



S8 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Florida summer iu a higher temperature than they could 
possibly endure elsewhere. 

Of course there is a reason for this ; nay, two of them. 
In the first place, the bountiful breeze, one of fair Flor- 
ida's coolest yet best friends, is a very important factor in 
fanning the worker and preventing overheating; in the 
second place, the dryness of the atmosphere promotes pro- 
fuse perspiration, which of itself is one of nature's cooling 
processes. 

Sunstroke is utterly unknown in Florida. The reason 
of this unwonted exemption from one of the most common 
casualties of the Northern summer being this very fact of 
so profuse a perspiration ; it is a safety valve, as every one 
knows or should know, and its sudden stoppage or absence 
is the direct cause of sunstroke and other serious illnesses. 

Now and then (but ver3^ seldom) a man may attempt 
too much and overtax his strength, and consequently is 
overcome, not so much by heat as by exhaustion; but 
these attacks are very different from sunstroke, and are 
rarely serious. 

One reason why the Florida summer is so pleasant and 
comparatively cool is that rains fall nearly every day, not 
all day, but in showers, usually in the afternoon or morn- 
ing, and often when it is not actually raining the sun is 
veiled by clouds, so here are still other factors at work, 
you see, to cool the atmosphere. June, July, and August 
are the ' ' rainy months," but of course it does rain at 
other times also. • 

The only objectionable feature of the Florida summer 
that we have ever heard quoted is its length. It is true 
that it begins sooner and ends later than the Northern 
summer, but even so it is not very much longer, and it is 
cooler and more uniform in temperature, and hence more 
healthful." 



TEMPERATURE — SUIUlMER. 89 

The warm season usually sets in about the middle of 
May and continues until the middle of September, when 
a sensible difference will be noticed. 

And now, as to the nights during the Florida summer, 
they are invariably cool and refreshing. Here no one 
ever rises in the morning worn out with a night of rest- 
less tossing and inability to sleep because of heat and 
sultriness. 

There is always the breeze ready to dance through your 
rooms, if allowed, and fan you to sleep, a good, sound, 
refreshing sleep, and no one who knows Florida will retire 
without having some extra covering lying convenient at 
the foot of the bed, for it is almost certain to be needed 
before morning. 

ISTow, how does this record compare with the summer 
nights elsewhere ? 

Florida is in the far South, it is true, but she neither 
roasts nor boils her honest citizens who stand by her, not 
only in winter but in summer. Let the doubters come, 
see, and feel for themselves ; let them come from the land 
of snow and ice, and hot, sultry days and stifling nights ; 
from the land of storms and clouds and tornadoes and 
blizzards, and compare with these things Florida's mild 
winter and cool summer, her refreshing nights, her aver- 
age of three hundred clear days out of the three hundred 
and sixty-five, and her gentle, invigorating breezes. 

Having now, as we trust, proven beyond dispute by 
facts and figures that the climate of Florida is the most 
healthy, as it certainly is the most pleasant in the world, 
and therefore unsurpassed so far in the * ' raAv material " 
that goes to make up a home full of happiness and con- 
tentment, we will pass on to the consideration of those 
points that must influence the settler in the locality he 
shall select for his new residence. 



90 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

CHAPTER VI. 

PINE LANDS AND HAMMOCKS. 

Florida, it must be remembered, is a large State; so 
large and so varied in its productions that, to avoid con- 
fusion, it has been by common consent and Governmental 
authority subdivided into sections. Northern, Middle, and 
South Florida. 

In each of these the character of the soil and landscape 
is exceedingly diversified ; nowhere is it all pine or all 
hammock, all lake or all river, all flat or all undulating. 

The report of one of the Florida Commissioners of Im- 
migration speaks truly in saying: "There is one feature 
in the topography of Florida which no other country in 
the United States possesses, and which affords a great 
security to the health of its inhabitants; it is that the 
pine lands, which form the basis of the country and wdiich 
are almost universally healthy, are nearly every where 
studded at intervals of a few miles with the rich ham- 
mock lands. These hammocks are not, as is generally 
supposed, low, wet lands; they do not require ditching 
or draining ; they vary in extent from twenty acres to 
forty thousand acres." 

In no one respect has Florida been more systematically 
misrepresented, both in malice and ignorance, than in the 
matter of her soil. 

Unhappily, tourists as a rule see but little except that 
which lies on the surface, and as a consequence their 
report is almost invariably of a one-hued, "sandy, and 
unproductive " nature. 

This is to be regretted, not only because it is only par- 
tially true, but because it at once prejudices those w^ho are 



PINE LAKDS AND HASIMOCKS. 91 

accustomed to dark, loamy soils, and have a dread of 
"hungry, leachy sands." 

While it is true that in the surface soil sand predomi- 
nates, yet in many parts of the State the soil is a firm, 
sticky, clay-like loam; sometimes of that rich dark red, 
which, as every one knows, is an indication of exceeding 
fertility. 

Such, to a great extent, are the lands of Middle Flor- 
ida, as we shall see in the future. 

Before going further let us dive below the surface and 
bring to light some of the (literally) bottom facts that 
underlie the State. 

In the older geographies, gazetteers, encyclopedias, 
every where, in short, where the subject is mentioned at 
all, you will read that Florida is of a comparatively recent 
formation, and upraised from the ocean on a coralline 
formation. 

This statement, however, like so many others, as we 
have seen, has been proved to be a complete mistake, the 
result of judging merely by surface indication, Florida 
having been one of the few States that has never had the 
advantage of a regular geological survey. 

At this present writing, however, this important work 
is at last going forward and a preliminary survey is being 
made by the new State Geologist, which has already re- 
vealed the truth above stated, although yet in its earliest 
stages and very far from complete in any respect. 

The rocks that underlie Florida are of the same geolog- 
ical formation as those of the territories that rest on the 
heights of the Eocky Mountains, and the observations so 
far made render it not at all improbable that the same 
upheaval which raised the Kocky Mountains also lifted 
Florida from the depths of the ocean to become one of 
the most sparkling gems of our sisterhood of States. 



92 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

So far from coral being the corner-stone on which she 
rests, the main rock beds that have been reached by the 
borings for her first artesian wells are those of the lignite 
and flint beds that belong to the eocene tertiary, and this 
too at a very moderate depth,- from one hundred and fifty 
to two hundred feet, and in some sections these rocks are 
actually outcrops. 

The indications as to what riches and mineral wealth 
the thorough survey soon to be made will reveal are sim- 
ply startling in their promise to those who have heretofore 
been satisfied to consider Florida as " all on the surface." 

Near Tallahassee, for instance, rich specimens of iron 
ore have been found cropping out on the surface, and the 
probabilities are that the hills around that beautiful city 
are underlaid with this ore in paying quantities. 

An eminent mineralogist, who some time since made 
careful and patient research in South Florida, found on 
the dividing ridge an outcropping of ' ' over seventy tons 
in sight and unknown quantities beneath the surface" of 
an ore which, carefully assayed, proved to contain fifty- 
four per cent of pure lead and fifty-two ounces of pure 
silver to the ton, in addition to traces of gold in paying 
quantities, and this result was obtained from random spec- 
imens taken from the outcroppings. 

Indications of gold have also been found in Northern 
Florida, and this same mineralogist declares that there are 
at least tln*ee extensive coal deposits, one in Northern, one 
in Middle, and one in South Florida. 

"Mining," he says, "will be one of Florida's great 
future industries." 

Already the preliminary geological survey has shown 
rich deposits of phosphates, equal in value to the famous 
Charleston phosphate rocks, and these appear to exist all 
over the State, as they have been found in widely sepa- 



PINE LANDS AND HAMMOCKS. 93 

rated districts ; extensive marl beds and the best quality of 
limestone for manufacturing purposes are also among the 
preliminary revelations of the geological wealth of Florida. 

The surface soil, to the consideration of which we now 
return after our excursion "into the depths," is composed 
all over the State of deposits — "recent" as compared with 
the age of the underlying rocks — of sand, clay, and marl, 
which in themselves contain finely comminuted marine 
shells, coral, phosphates, calcareous materials, salts, de- 
posited by the sea that once swept over them all, and 
vegetable humus, which necessarily is the most recent 
addition of all and is constantly accumulating. 

So varied is the'quality of this soil that, like the State 
itself, it has been subdivided and classified as follows, in 
order that it may be spoken of understandingly : First, 
second, and third-class pine lands ; high hammock, low 
hammock, and swampy lands ; no less than six grades. 

The first-class pine lands of Florida are not like any 
other lands found in any of her sister States ; in fact, it is 
doubtful whether their counterpart exists in any country. 
Their surface is covered for several inches with a rich, 
dark, vegetable mold, beneath which lies a chocolate-col- 
ored, sandy loam several feet in depth, and beneath this 
again is a substratum of marl, clay or limestone. 

This soil, as may be seen, should be very fertile, and so 
it is, exceedingly so, and moreover wonderfully durable ; 
for instance, there are several sections where for eighteen 
years the land has been cultivated in successive seasons 
without the addition of a particle of manure, and yet it 
has yielded, and still yields, four hundred pounds of Sea 
Island cotton to the acre ; and how much longer these 
lands will continue thus productive "deponent sayeth 
not," because no one can tell ; they have not yet begun 
to faU ofi". 



94 HOME LIFE IN FLOELDA. 

These first-class pine lands are elevated, almost with 
''high hills" in some localities, but as a rule merely 
undulating in a degree pleasant to the eye and conduc- 
ive to health and beauty of landscape. 

The timber is large, tall, and straight, with occasional 
giant oaks; and in many localities where there is but 
little, underbrush, and the clear, sparkling waters of the 
lakes that are thickly scattered through these beautiful 
pine lands, with their clean, white beaches, peep at one 
here and there, the scene is full of a quiet, peaceful, 
home feeling that is inexpressively soothing and restful. 

The greater portion of these superior lands — where they 
are found in the largest bodies we mean — is in the more 
northern and western sections, where are found some of 
the richest and most attractive portions of the State. 

When we consider what has been raised on this first- 
class pine land (we could give some marvelous figures did 
our present purpose permit), and that it has been accom- 
plished by the rather hap-hazard methods of cultivation 
that are still too much in vogue, and then consider what 
results thorough cultivation, intensive farming, and deep 
plowing and fertilizing would bring forth, we become lost 
in wonder at the possibilities of the despised Florida sands, 
as represented by her first-class pine lands. 

Frequently clay is found close to the surface, inter- 
mingled with rich vegetable mud, and these lands are 
eminently adapted to the growth of almost every thing — 
oranges, lemons, long and short staple cotton, sugar-cane, 
corn, potatoes, oats, rye, turnips, vegetables, fruits of all 
kinds; and in the northern sections, wheat, barley, and 
some varieties of apples, and every where, also, grasses 
and cattle ad libitum. 

There is more second-class pine land than first-class. 
Fully two thirds of all the Florida homes are located on 



PINE LANDS AND HAMMOCKS. 95 

this grade of land, and although rated as "second," their 
quality and productiveness in actual cultivation is little, 
if any, below that of the first-class. 

Second-class pine land is timbered with a medium size 
growth of pine trees, with here and there a solitary black 
oak ; a great many willow oaks, as bushes or small trees, 
and an occasional clump of palmetto in the lower spots, 
but elsewhere there is little underbrush. 

These lands are frequently rolling and, like their su- 
perior grade, interspersed with crystal lakes. 

Many of the finest orange groves in the State are located 
on the second-class pine lands. The famous Spear grove 
for one, the Ginn grove for another. 

And now we come to a class of lands much abused and 
heretofore despised, but like many other things, especially 
in a new, progressive country", improving on acquaintance. 
These are the third-class pine or black-jack lands. 

They do look poor and discouraging enough, and unfor- 
tunately these are the lands that lie along the lines of sev- 
eral of Florida's main railroads, in full view of the trav- 
eler, who naturally judges from what he sees rather than 
from a hidden reality. 

The surface soil is light yellow, sometimes even white ; 
the wire-grass is short and thin, and often missing alto- 
gether; the pine trees are stunted in height and their 
foliage sprawling, often only thirty or forty to the acre, 
with plenty of crooked, gnarled black-jack oak trees and 
sprouts, sickly clumps of palmetto, and altogether a tired, 
out-of-heart, don't-care sort of look. 

This land costs less to clear than any other, and when 
put under cultivation and the same fertilizers, no more, 
given to it that are bestowed on the two superior grades, 
its productiveness is wonderful, and it takes a very close 
observer to detect much difference in the ultimate results. 



96 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Some of the most famous old groves are on "black- 
jack," or third-rate pine lands ; the Belair grove, at San- 
ford, is one, the De Forest grove another. 

If the "black-jack" soil shows the least tint of yellow 
(and very little of it does not), it will come out all right 
if properly fertilized and cultivated. 

It should be noted that red or yellow soils contain iron 
in a greater or less degree, and this under cultivation 
combines with tannic and other acids, and so in a few 
years the yellow soil becomes dark and rich, but the white 
sands lack iron and will never darken. 

"Hammocks" are tracts of land which, lying rather 
lower than the surrounding country or else along the 
banks of the larger lakes and rivers, are constantly moist, 
and have, therefore, escaped the annual visitation of the 
destructive fires which every spring sweep from one end 
to the other of Florida's piney woods. We shall have 
more to say upon this subject by and by. 

Thus year after year the falling leaves of the hickory, 
oak, and other deciduous trees which grow so luxuriantly 
in these damp places remain to decay upon the ground, 
thus steadily enriching it and forming a rich humus in 
which a luxuriant undergrow^th springs up, adding more 
and more to the fertility of the soil by its falling leaves 
and branches ; such an undergrowth as has no opportunity 
to establish itself in the piney woods on account of these 
same annual fires we have mentioned. 

This, we are convinced, is the true origin of the Florida 
hammocks, where the wild orange groves are invariably 
found, and where the rankest tropical luxuriance of vege- 
table life is the most striking characteristic ; through one 
of these true Florida hammocks it is impossible to make 
one's way without the constant use of axe and hatchet. 

The writer has seen the giant trees and wondrous wealth 



PINE LANDS AND HAMMOCKS. 97 

of vegetation of the tropical regions, those of South Amer- 
ica, yet even there the rich, dense undergrowth of our gen- 
uine Florida hammocks is not excelled. 

It is the high hammocks that are usually meant when a 
' ' Florida hammock " is referred to in a general way ; these 
are on high ground, are often decidedly undulating, almost 
hilly, in fact; their soil is a fine vegetable mold with a 
sandy loam, and underneath, from two to five feet, is usu- 
ally found a substratum of marl, limestone or clay — we 
saw a piece of this substratum the other day — a hard, 
rock-like substance underlying one of the finest (one time 
wild) groves of Lake Harris, and had we not known other- 
wise we should surely have declared it to be a fragment of 
the famous coquina wall of St. Augustine. 

These soils seldom suffer from too much water, but they 
are frequently aflected and their trees droop under a 
di'ought that passes harmlessly over their piney-woods 
neighbors. 

'* Hammocks" are very rich and fertile, no doubt; their 
large trees, dense undergrowth, the luxuriant growth of 
orange trees and splendid yield of sugar without the use 
of manures proves this fact. 

Low hammocks may be said to be a cross between the 
high hammock and the swamp lands, and in truth, this 
fact is recognized in the odd kind of local name often used 
to designate them, which is "swammocks;" they are not 
less fertile than the swamp lands, but their good qualities 
are not so durable ; the soil is deep and tenacious and the 
surface usually level, so that ditching is sometimes a ne- 
cessity — not often, however. 

Low hammock lands are not so plenty as the swamp 
lands, and it was on these tracts that the great bulk of 
the sugar plantations of the old regime were located. 

Let it not be supposed that all of Florida's rich lands 

7 



98 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

are ' ' hammock " lands, nor that all hammock lands are 
alike. This is the most diversified State in the Union, 
not only as regards climate, but soil and the unique dis- 
tribution of the different kinds of the latter. 

Most people regard Florida's hammocks as her richest 
and best land; this is not the case, however. The richest 
of the rich lands are those technically called ' ' swamp 
lands ; " they are of alluvial formation, and are constantly 
being added to in extent year by year. These tracts, 
varying from twenty to two hundred acres, sometimes 
more, were originally depressed basins, which have be- 
come gradually filled in by the washings from the higher 
surrounding lands ; for centuries, the broken branches, 
rotting wood, leaves, grass, and debris of all kinds have 
been steadily accumulating in these basins, which we may 
well term Dame Nature's compost heaps — heating, fer- 
menting, decaying, and becoming vast store-houses of the 
richest plant-food. So that these swamp lands are really 
the most valuable in the State ; not only because they are 
richer than the hammocks at the outset, but because their 
fertility is much more lasting. 

But, and '' there's the rub," these swamp lands are like 
gold mines, you know the richness is there, but you must 
have money in your pocket to get at it. You invest ten 
dollars and reap fifty or one hundred in return, but you 
must first have the ten dollars to use as a lever; if you 
have it, you are all right ; but most people who immigrate 
to Florida have it not, and it is for this reason, because 
these rich swamp lands must be carefully ditched and 
drained before they can be made available, that to-day 
there still remain for sale nearly one million acres, which 
may be had for from two dollars downward per acre. 

We have said nothing about the healthiness of living 
on these same lands — is it necessary? Swamp lands all 



PmE LANDS AND HAMMOCKS. 99 

over the world are the fever-breeders, and those who culti- 
vate these lands should know enough to locate their homes 
several miles from them on higher ground. 

Where, however, these lands are thoroughly and perma- 
nently drained in large bodies, as, for instance, by such 
enormous operations as those undertaken by the great 
Okeechobee Drainage Company, they become as healthy 
spots for residences as can be found any where, a fact that 
hundreds of people already settled on these wondrously 
rich ' ' Reclaimed Lands " can testify. 

Hundreds of thousands, nay, millions of acres of pro- 
ductive lands are thus being added to Florida's available 
resources as the result of one of the greatest enterprises 
of the age — a * ' howling wilderness " and waste of shallow 
waters converted into a veritable ''Land of milk and 
honey." 



100 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

CHAPTEK VII. 

"where shall I SETTLE?" 

The very first question that arises and imperatively calls 
for a decision, after the great question of ''to be or not to 
be" a Floridian has been answered in the affirmative, is : 

" Where shall I settle?" 

In its narrower sense the query is quickly and emphati- 
cally answered : "In the piney woods — never in the low 
hammocks." In its broader sense the answer is not so 
ready, and, Yankee-like, must be primarily answered by 
another question : 

"What is your special object? The best climate for a 
consumptive ? " 

Then locate in South Florida, by all means. 

Do you want to raise oranges, lemons, guavas, bananas, 
pineapples ? 

South Florida again. 

Is it merely your object to secure a climate less boister- 
ous than that of the more northward Southern States, 
where you can raise peaches, pears, plums, and put early 
vegetables into the northern markets ? where you can raise 
the regular farm products, oats, corn, rye, and potatoes ? 

Then Northern or Middle Florida will suit you just as 
w^ell, if not better, than the more tropical divisions. Their 
soil is richer as a rule, and the two or three hundred miles 
of distance saved in time and freight make a respectable 
item in the balancing of accounts. 

And now it strikes us that we have used the term of 
Northern, Middle, and South Florida, and it is not likely 
that one in ten of our readers will understand what these 
terms signify. Let us explain. 



''where shall I SETTLE?" 101 

Florida is a very large State, embracing an area of over 
sixty thousand square miles, and all varieties of climate, 
from a tropical to a temperate, consequently the general 
term of " Florida " is too sweeping in its application, and 
the necessity for a more particular descriptive title has been 
met as above. 

South Florida proper embraces the country south of 
twenty-eight and a half degrees of latitude. 

Middle Florida lies between this and the thirtieth degree, 
while Northern Florida (embracing also "West Florida") 
claims the remainder of the State. 

As we have indicated, this latter is the section to suit the 
settler whose main object is not the cultivation of the 
citrus family. 

Here is the Florida for live stock, corn, wheat, grapes, 
figs, peaches, and all the products of a more rigorous cli- 
mate, and a few of the hardier southern fruits ; it is not 
tropical, it does not pretend to be, but it is beautiful, and 
more like the North we have left behind us than any other 
portion of the State ; and better live stock and crops, at so 
little expense and so great a profit, can be produced no- 
where, than in Northern Florida. Frosts are of no infre- 
quent occurrence and the winters are quite cool. 

Middle Florida lies between the twenty-eighth and thirti- 
eth parallels, and its products are those of the semi- tropics. 

Here one may see the vegetation of the temperate and 
the tropical zones growing side by side ; only the long sum- 
mer is sometimes hard upon the former, and an occasional 
winter frost chills the ardor of the latter. 

The orange, lemon, lime, grape, fig, guava, peach, and 
all garden vegetables grow and flourish in close proximity 
all the year round, with the occasional mishaps before 
alluded to. 

Cotton, cane, cow-peas, and rice, pay best of the field 



102 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

crops ; but wheat, corn, and oats, are less profitable tban 
in the more northern portions of the State. 

Lakes are few, except in the central portion, where, in 
the " Santa Fe and Eiistis Lake regions," are a number of 
very fine sheets of pure, clear water, full of fish, and fre- 
quently framed by bold, beautiful bluffs. 

Here the large orange groves flourish, and hundreds of 
new groves are being set out, while settler after settler rolls 
up his sleeves, and goes to work with a will in the truck- 
field ; sending on crate after crate, barrel after barrel, of 
green peas, tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, onions, spinach, 
egg-plants, celery, lettuce, beets, and the host of other gar- 
den vegetables to the great Northern and Western markets 
all through the months of January, February, March, and 
April. 

It is a business that, as a rule, pays handsomely, though 
some seasons, owing to "cold snaps " or drought, it fails. It 
is no uncommon thing to see from five hundred to a thou- 
sand dollars cleared on one acre of some special crop that 
has matured and reached its destination at a fortunate 
moment. 

One of the special crops is the strawberry, and often the 
profit on these little berries is so fabulous as to be fairly 
startling. 

And now we come to South Florida, where the semi-trop- 
ical and truly tropical productions stand side by side ; here 
heavy frosts seldom come, and when they do come the 
damage they do is usually light, chiefly affecting tender 
vegetables. 

Every tree, plant, and shrub of the subtropics is at home 
here, especially in the southernmost parts ; in the more 
northern portions some slight winter protection is given to 
pineapples, bananas, and guavas, a rude shelter of boughs, 
during two or three winter nights, when the thermometer 



''where shall I SETTLE?" 103 

threatens to fall below 36°. This may be necessary once 
or twice in several successive years, or it may not be need- 
ed at all in several seasons ; of course, the further south 
one goes the more can yearly tender fruits be depended 
on. Key West, and thereabouts, is the home of the pine- 
apple, banana, cocoanut, bread-fruit, sugar apple, and the 
host of more tropical fruits, but it is not the home of the 
orange, or lemon, or cane, or cotton. 

Even from this cursory review of the different divisions 
of Florida, you can readily see that never was a greater 
mistake made than to suppose, as so many do, that all parts 
of the State are alike in soil, climate, and production. 

Why is it that Norfolk, Virginia, vegetables and straw- 
berries find their way to the markets of New York and 
Philadelphia several weeks earlier than they can be supplied 
from their own vicinity ? 

Simply because Norfolk is several hundred miles south 
of New York and Philadelphia ; for the same reason Char- 
leston beats Norfolk, and Florida leads them both. 

Look at New Jersey : at Cape May spring is two weeks 
earlier than it is at Orange, only one hundred miles distant. 
In New York snow and ice are on the ground in St. Law- 
rence while the trees are blooming in Queen's County, and 
when the fields are green at Chappaqua, Ogdensburg, two 
hundred and fifty miles aAvay, is shivering with a foot or 
two of snow on the ground. 

Now, Florida is nearly four hundred miles long from its 
southwestern-most point to its northern or Georgia bound- 
ary line ; and who, after giving the subject even a passing 
thought, can not see the absurdity of the idea that her sea- 
sons, temperature, and productions, are alike over all her 
length and breadth ? In fact, they are widely diverse, as 
we have already seen. 

It is often charged against our State papers that they 



104 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

indulge iu " sectionaliziug," holding up one locality as bet- 
ter than others. Now we would respectfully suggest that 
this is rather an unjust accusation ; true, the State has been 
" sectionalized," but it is the Creator who has done it, not 
poor, finite human beings. God sectionalized Florida when 
he laid down one portion several hundred miles nearer to 
the equator than the other, just as He has sectionalized 
Southern and Northern California, New York and the 
Hudson Bay territory. 

What is it that the settler from the North and West 
seeks in coming to Florida for a home ? Health, semi-trop- 
ical fruits, and a warm winter climate. 

Well, the northern parts of the State can give him 
health, no doubt, and a far milder winter than he has left 
behind him, but very few semi-tropical fruits, and these with 
the ever-pressing danger of being killed, ''root and branch," 
by the frequent winter frosts and icy nights. Having said 
this, we need not say much on the warm winter question. 

Still, to those who seek only mild, not constantly warm, 
winters, and other occupations than semi-tropical fruit- 
growing, the more northern portions of Florida are very 
attractive, indeed, preferable. 

Let us take Leon County as a type of the rest, and see 
how it is there. 

Tallahassee, the quaint old capital of the State, is in this 
county, and the country thereabouts and around Pensacola 
w^as one of the earliest settled. 

Only a few years ago cotton was the one staple produc- 
tion ; a great deal of sugar-cane was raised, a little tobacco, 
some upland rice, corn, and here and there a planter — we 
mean the good old-fashioned, wealthy '' Southern planter" 
— could boast of raising his own meat ; but right here the 
production halted. 

King Cotton reigned supreme, and according as the 



"WHERE SHALL I SETTLE?" 105 

coming crop was full or short, so the merchant laid in a 
large or full stock of goods, for his pay must come from 
the royal hands of the reigning sovereign, the king afore- 
said, so there followed the inevitable high prices consequent 
on long credits. 

But now some of the stirring Northern element has crept 
in and things are changed in these as well as in the other 
portions of Florida. Truck-farming is the great winter 
business of three fourths of the people, and right royal is 
the attendant revenue, unless, as does sometimes happen, 
some unexpected mishap befalls the crops. 

The planting, cultivating, gathering, and shipping of 
garden vegetables keeps the truck-farmer busy from No- 
vember to May, or even June. 

We have elsewhere referred to the live stock of this por- 
tion of Florida, and the majority of our Northern brethren, 
who have been reared in the idea that " there is neither beef 
or butter, nor grass in Florida," will be surprised to learn 
that dairy farming is hereabouts rapidly assuming notice- 
able proportions. 

Improved stock has been imported, several genuine dairy 
farms, with pastures of Bermuda, Para, Guinea, and other 
grasses, have been established, and now, in the first infancy 
of this enterprise, three or four farms in Leon County, 
alone, are sending from seven hundred to one thousand 
pounds of first-class butter each week to the Jacksonville 
market, and the demand is far beyond the supply; this 
butter brings the owner thirty cents a pound. 

Those who -inaugurated this new field of industry for 
Florida are reaping large profits, and each year sees their 
herds increased and their pastures enlarged. Even cream- 
eries are being established. 

One half-blood or even three-quarter-blood Alderney or 
Jersey cow, they tell us, gives more and richer milk than 



106 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

four of the common breed, and eats only one fourth as much. 
And now the dainty little Guinea cow is rapidly becoming 
a favorite. Success to the pioneer dairymen of Florida ! 
More on this subject later on. 

Another new enterprise is the drying and shipping of 
blackberries. This fruit is indigenous to the South, and 
in Florida we find it every where, by the roadside, in old 
and new fields, in the hammocks, in the piney woods — fine, 
large, plump berries, tempting and delicious. 

Years asfo North Carolina awoke to the wealth scattered 
broadcast over her wild lauds, and now she sends out from 
her borders, each year, dried blackberries to the value of 
$100,000 ! Florida can do the same, ' ' only more so." With 
a small, inexpensive fruit-drier, and berries bought, as they 
can be and are in some localities, at two cents a quart (and 
at this rate the pickers make from seventy-five cents to one 
dollar a day), the profit attained by the shipper is very 
handsome. 

Then there is another business looming up for the upper 
divisions of Florida, one that has already, in its infancy, 
assumed immense proportions in California, and is quite as 
well if not better adapted to Florida. We allude to the 
raising and drying of figs. The fig is a paying fruit wher- 
ever grown, and nowhere can it be brought to greater per- 
fection than in our State, wherever a clay or marl subsoil 
lies within three or four feet of the surface. 

The tree is easily raised from cuttings, is a rapid grower, 
once started ; it requires no pruning, fruits at an early age, 
and is a prolific bearer ; it is not subject to blight or disease, 
and the process of drying the fruit for market is not a dif- 
ficult one. The same fruit-drier that is used for blackber- 
ries, peaches, huckleberries, will answer the same purpose 
for figs also. 

We have no fears of proving a false prophet in predict- 



"WHERE SHALL I SETTLE?" 107 

ing that the time is not far distant when '' Fkrida figs" 
will be quoted in the New York markets and will brmg the 

hio'hest prices. -^- , . 

Peach-<.rowing is another important industry Here this 
fruit flourishes I it rarely does in South Florida and mar- 
velous prices are obtained for the early sorts, all the wa} 
from ten to forty dollars per half-bushel crate. It seem 
incredible and more like a fairy story, but it has been done 
more than once-single peaches sometimes selling in the 
lar^e NoHhern cities at from one to two dollars each, ihe 
la « kinds, too late for the Northern markets, find a ready 
home sale at two dollars per bushel, and any surplus can 
be dried and a handsome profit reaped therefrom. 

Then the northern portion of Florida (m common w.th 
South Florida) has just been reached by a"boom tha 
is destined to echo and re-echo over the land as loudly as 
the " orange boom" of the latter. 

Every body knows what a stir the LeConte pear has been 
making these last few years in Georgia, where thousands 
of acr^s are being set out in this tree. We 1, this same 
noble fruit has proved itself admirably adapted to Florida 
as a rule, pears sought to be raised here do not behave well 
their conduct is out of all reason and propriety ; they put 
out their blossoms at uncanny times, when they should have 
known enough to stay at home, and then they are nipped 
in the bud by the chill weather, or drop their fruit before 
maturity. But this is not the case with the LeConte pear 
it roots from cuttings, and bears three years thereafter ; it 
is a vigorous grower, never sheds its fruit, but ripens it 
two to three mouths earlier than the earliest of other vari- 
eties ; it ships well and brings splendid prices in the North- 
ern markets; it is no unusual thing either for a tree to ma- 
ture a second crop, and half mature a third, during the 
year; add to this, that it is free from blight and disease, 



108 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

and is a very handsome tree, and what more can we ask of 
a fruit tree ! 

Vineyards, too, are profitable ; and last, not least, there 
is no country in the world better adapted to the culture of 
the mulberry tree, and consequently the production of silk. 
The people are awaking to this fact, and many an acre is 
already set out in the great silk-worm food, by private in- 
dividuals and by corporations. 

In fact, after long years of dormant energies, paralyzed 
by the rule of the "■ancient regime" which has opposed all 
innovations and clung to old grooves, the northern and 
older settled portions of Florida are rousing up to new life 
and energy, and a prosperous future looms up ahead. 

In concluding our review of this section, we need only 
to add, its health is all one could ask, and the face of the 
country such as to offer, not only comfortable, but pictur- 
esque homes, while the fine roads make driving a pleasure, 
and contribute not a little to sociability among its people. 
Game is abundant, and fish are plentiful. 

We have, we trust, presented the northern divisions of 
the State in a fair and honest light ; and, as you see, that 
light is not altogether dimmed by the more brilliant gleam 
of the southern sections. 

Next in order, in our examination of types, comes the 
"Santa Fe Lake Region," which is receiving a goodly 
share of immigration ; it is a picturesque country, with 
high, rolling hills, good roads, clear w^ater lakes, deep to 
the very shores, and clean sandy beaches, beautiful mirrors 
enframed by green-mantled bluffs, with cosy homes nest- 
ling on their sides. 

The key of this locality and port of entry, as it were, is 
Waldo, a thriving town on the line of the Atlantic and 
Gulf Transit Kailroad, about midway between Cedar Keys 
and Fernandina, the termini of the road. 



''where shall I SETTLE?" 109 

The country hereabouts owes its prosperity, present and 
future, in a great measure to the Santa Fe Canal, which, 
projected and pushed to completion only a few years ago 
by a few energetic capitalists, now connects, by means of a 
little steamer. Lake Santa Fe with Lake Alto, and this 
again with the Transit Kailroad at Waldo, only sixty miles 
from Jacksonville. 

The Santa Fe Canal thus affords an easy outlet for mar- 
ket to thirty miles of shore line, and one hundred thousand 
acres of good, rich land, both hammock and pine. This 
neighborhood is particularly adapted to raising early vege- 
tables, and the transportation facilities afforded by the lakes 
and canal and railroad make it an especially desirable local- 
ity for the truck-farmer. 

It is a very rare thing that orange or lemon trees are 
injured near these great lakes; many a severe frost has 
passed them by unharmed, while injuring and even killing 
to the ground these fruits a hundred miles further south ! 

And this remarkable exemption is due to the high lands, 
dry atmosphere, and the close vicinity of the lakes, whose 
gentle pleading softens and tempers the asperities of the 
rude north wind as he rushes over their placid bosoms. 

The pine lands produce about fifteen bushels of corn to 
the acre, but, with a little manure and good cultivation, 
will easily yield double this amount ; from one to two bales 
of cotton to the acre ; oats and rye are also fair crops, and 
upland rice yields from forty to sixty bushels per acre; 
sugar-cane is also largely cultivated. 

. Peaches, pears, grapes, figs, and strawberries, all these 
are destined to become staple croj^s. 

This is true, not only of the Santa Fe or Central Lake 
Region, but also of a large portion of Northern Florida, 
where here and there some small orange groves are found, 
where a sheltered position can be obtained. 



110 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Lake Santa Fe is one of the most beautiful lakes in 
Florida, about twelve miles long and three to five wide ; 
and, nestling cosily at its far southern extremity, around a 
little cove, lies one of the prettiest growing towns the State 
can boast of; as healthful as it is pretty, and surrounded 
by a beautiful hill and lake country, adapted to every va- 
riety of production peculiar to its section, possessing some 
of the oldest and finest orange groves in the State, Melrose 
is speedily destined to become one of the most flourishing 
towns in Florida ; and with the one railroad connection it 
now has, and three others in progress, it can not fail to be- 
come a commercial center as well as a lovely home-site. 

In Suwannee County and thereabouts, turpentine farms 
are in vogue and are very profitable. 

Here we find no lakes or running streams of water, but 
many of these strange sinks to which we have alluded else- 
where, natural wells, we might call them, with perpendic- 
ular sides, and tunneled through the solid limestone rock, 
that crops up to the surface, or very near it. 

And now we come to the Great Lake Region of South 
Florida, of which the rapidly-growing city of Leesburg is 
the commercial center. 

This place, though by no means among the earliest set- 
tled in this section of the country, has, both owing to its 
location and the character of the land round about it, rap- 
idly forged ahead of all the other portions of Lake County. 
It has two banks, several churches, a college, an academy, 
an ice factory, numerous stores, several railroads run- 
ning north and south, and altogether has a bright future 
before it. 

Lakes GriflJin and Harris, the one twelve miles long, the 
other eighteen, are only separated from each other by a 
narrow strip of land, and on this neck, at a point where it 
is only half a mile wide, Leesburg is situated, thus securing 



*•' WHERE SHALL I SETTLE?" Ill 

a landing on both of these beautiful lakes, and the traffic 
of the hundreds of families who are scattered all along their 
shores, and for miles inland. 

And now let us look at the country lying around these 
lakes. Griffin, Harris, and Eustis, as a type of the rest of 
this "piney woods" section, which includes no little ham- 
mock land as well. 

The peninsula on which Leesburg stands extends north- 
east from the city for eight miles and is, at one point, sev- 
eral miles wide. Lakes Harris, Griffin, Eustis, and the 
Ocklawaha River, are its boundaries, and a remarkable tract 
it is, skirted along the water brink by rich hammock land, 
often a mile or a mile and a half Avide, the center or back- 
bone of the strip being pine ridges, overlooking beautiful 
little lakes. 

On this weird peninsula were, a few years ago, the larg- 
est wild orange groves in the State, with the exception of 
one at Orange Lake ; these have all been budded with the 
delicious fruit with which we are all so familiar. 

And now, starting from a point two miles from Leesburg, 
on the shores of Lake Harris, one may see groves occupy- 
ing hundreds of acres of trees in full bearing, and other 
hundreds of acres of younger trees, the whole extending 
in one unbroken line for several miles. 

It is an impressive sight, especially when one remembers 
that only twenty years ago this whole region was one 
great tangled wilderness. 

Then crossing this strip of land to Lake Griffin, what 
do we see there ? 

Another vast wild grove, reclaimed and civilized — noth- 
ing left as it was, except that the budded trees mostly stand 
where they grew, and the giant live-oaks stretch out their 
moss-draped arms with protecting care over their lowlier 
brethren. 



112 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

In those localities where clay or marl crops up near the 
surface, within two or three feet, peaches grow thriftily, 
and nearly every where figs, pomegranates, guavas, bana- 
nas, grapes, and pineapples, flourish exceedingly, the lat- 
ter needing occasionally a light winter protection. 

Persimmons, plums, grapes, blackberries, huckleberries, 
grow wild and in great abundance. Cattle and hogs are 
kept in large numbers, and are very profitable to their 
owners, though the hogs, as we shall see in future chapters, 
are a terrible " thorn in the flesh" to the neighborhood in 
which they range. The cattle, as is too often the case in 
Florida, are valued less on account of the milk they yield 
than for the fertilization of the ground in the pens where 
they are confined during the night, their calves being re- 
tained as hostages by their owners to insure their coming 
home toward ^' sun-down." On this subject more hereafter. 

There are only a few flocks of sheep and Angora goats 
as yet, and they are experimental ; but the enterprise bids 
fair to prove successful and profitable, therefore it will 
quickly assume large proportions. 

Of course, cotton and sugar-cane are staple crops ; no 
where can they be grown in greater perfection ; but still they 
are not supreme, the citrus is the royal family hereabouts. 

The health of the peoj^le is excellent, whenever they 
have the good sense to avoid marshy localities, where-, as 
every body knows, malaria is manufactured from the decay- 
ing vegetation, not only of Florida, but every where over 
the world. 

As a general thing, the malaria of Florida marshes is 
not of a malignant type ; the fever it gives is the regular 
old-fashioned chill and fever, or else a mild intermittent ; 
it causes its victim to feel wretched and apathetic, but does 
not often kill, unless, as sometimes happens, it finds a sister- 
disease ready to join forces with it. 



*' WHERE SHALL I SETTLE?" 113 

Turning to the westward from Leesburg, we pass at once 
to the gentle, rolling country that is the characteristic type 
of the ujDper portions of South Florida. It is a piney- 
woods country, with a top soil of sand and a subsoil of red 
or white clay, marl, or shell-lime, "sometimes cropping to 
the surface, at others two to ten feet below it. 

Numerous small lakes break the monotony of the tall 
trees and green wire-grass that stretch for miles upon miles 
in all directions ; these vary in size from a half acre to sev- 
eral hundred acres ; nor is the extent of each lakelet always 
the same, but variable, according as the wet or dry season 
is paramount ; their base is clear, pure sand ; no marsh, 
no miasma here, no stagnant water, like our ponds of the 
North, with their muddy, slimy shores ; and well is it that 
this is so, for scarcely can a piece of land containing twen- 
ty acres, be found in many localities, and most healthy 
ones too, without one or more of these little lakelets nest- 
ling in its midst, shimmering in the sunshine like a mirror 
set in a green frame. 

Besides the various members of the citrus family, guavas, 
bananas, and pineapples grow here in great luxuriance, 
although they are occasionally "chilled in their ardor" by a 
winter frost ; but a wrapping of moss will usually protect the 
banana if need be ; the guava, even if it drops its leaves, 
soon starts out again, and a handful of moss dropped over 
the pineapple will insure its safety. This fruit is an ex- 
tremely profitable one, a yield of four or five hundred dol- 
lars per acre being nothing uncommon, when the soil is 
rich and cultivation good. 

Guavas are also very profitable, and will become a staple 
all over Florida, now that two species of this valuable fruit 
have been introduced that are frost-proof, as well as supe- 
rior for jelly to the common sorts ; these are the Cattley 
and Chinese guavas. 

8 



114 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

All of this family are very prolific, and bear in eighteen 
months from the seed, and the jelly made from them is 
superior to the far-famed " Guava jelly" of Havana, which 
is really marmalade. Florida guava jelly is jelly in reality, 
and is clear as crystal, haying the appearance of crab-apple 

jelly. 

And now we come to the Indian River Region, in de- 
scribing which Ave virtually describe also the Tampa, Man- 
atee, and other coastwise portions of South Florida. Let 
us take the country immediately around the Indian and 
Halifax rivers. 

Oranges, lemons, and limes, head the list of fruits, and 
pineapples come next; then follow bananas, guavas, and 
other tropical and semi-tropical fruits ; cotton and sugar- 
cane are also largely grown. 

This is pre-eminently a fruit-raising section ; garden veg- 
etables and several field crops are successfully raised, but 
they are only auxiliaries ; there is more profit in fruit cul- 
ture. 

The climate is delightful ; breezes from the neighboring 
ocean temper the summer heat and, as a rule, drive away 
the frosts of winter ; the water fronts are often high banks 
with clear sandy beaches. Fish, oysters, turtle, waterfowl, 
deer, and other game, are to be had in profusion ; mosqui- 
toes are no more troublesome than in many places in the 
North, in some localities they are almost unknown, while 
in others they are "almost unendurable" during the sum- 
mer season. 

A very few homesteads, beautifully located, are still open 
to the settler ; but many of the fortunate first-comers are 
dividing up their lands into lots for sale, both hammock 
and pine lands. 

The country is very healthy, and full of great possibili- 
ties for the future ; and now that the great iron horse has 



"where shall I SETTLE?" 115 

at last found his way into these regions, the Indian Kiver, 
Manatee, Tampa, and Charlotte Harbor regions are already 
witnessing a rapid influx of settlers. 

The Caloosahatchie and Peace rivers, emptying into 
Charlotte Harbor, are large, noble rivers, and numerous 
towns are springing up along their banks, of which the 
largest and oldest is Fort Myers, on the south bank of the 
Caloosahatchie, which river, for over forty miles from its 
mouth, is a mile or more in width. 

This is one of the best locations in the State for tropical 
productions, and one of great healthfulness and beauty. 

With these data in hand, we trust that our readers will 
find it an easy matter to select an objective point for settle- 
ment. 



116 HOME LIFE iN FLORIDA. 

CHAPTER VIII. 

"what will it cost?" 

Having now discussed the important question, ''Where 
shall I settle?" let us next look into the second, no less 
momentous one, "What will it cost?" 

Now, this is a good deal like the far-famed query, ' ' How 
big is a piece of chalk ? " 

There is no place in the civilized world, Avhere men do 
congregate, where also money to any extent may not be 
got rid of by those so inclined, and Florida being in the 
above category, and not so near "the jumping-ofT place," 
either, as she was only a few years ago, is no exception to 
this rule. Meney can be buried here as well as elsewhere ; 
and the question of "What will it cost to settle?" may 
meet with widely different replies from as many stand-points. 

We, however, are not writing for the benefit of those 
who have already an abundance of this world's goods ; such 
need no advice from us, they can come and go, and settle 
as and where they list. Our items are meant for those 
who come to Florida seeking to improve their fortunes ; 
who have but little to start with in their new life, except 
a wealth of hope, energy, and perseverance, and this is the 
best kind of wealth to possess, the world over. To such 
willing, earnest workers as these, the question of ' ' What 
will it cost ? " comes home often with direful significance. 

So, then, what we want to know, just now, is not the 
maximum (that is an uncertain quantity hard to deter- 
mine), but the minimum cost of settling down in a new 
home in this genial clime. Of course, even here there is 
an extreme ; some men, strong and sinewy, go out into the 
wild woods, hcAV doAvn the tall pines, build a little log hut 



*'WHAT WILL IT COST?" 117 

to shelter their families, and then go out to work by the 
month or the day for wealthier or more enterprising neigh- 
bors ; and thus keep on from year to year, without energy 
or ambition to work hard enough to improve their condition 
or insure the future comfort of their families ; but such 
so-called "men" as these are few, thank Heaven! And, 
again, there are some who began their Florida lives just as 
cheaply and roughly as these, and yet kept pushing upward, 
until now they are among the richest and most influential 
men in the State. The majority who are coming to Flor- 
ida in these days, however, are men who have a few hun- 
dred dollars in their pockets, and want to know how to 
make the best use of them for their present and future 
benefit. 

The question of location settled in its broader sense, next 
comes that of the particular piece of land, both as to kind, 
quality, and locality. To those seeking permanent homes 
in Florida this is a subject so fraught with weal or woe, 
health or sickness, success or failure, that it can not receive 
too great care and study. And in this connection we can 
not too earnestly deplore the petty jealousies that are so 
frequently witnessed by would-be settlers, leading to the 
pitting of one section against another, and the decrying of 
one neighbor — especially of that neighbor's land— by an- 
other, to the harm and degradation of all. 

The St. John's River man, meeting a stranger bound for 
the Ocklawaha and Lake Regions, will do his best to con- 
vince him that the only good, healthy land to be had, is 
that in which he is personally interested ; the Indian River 
man will tell the stranger that his locality is the only right 
and proper one to settle in ; the Lake Region man decries 
the St. John's River lands ; the man with pine land to sell 
vituperates the hammocks ; the hammock owner runs down 
the pine land, and each neighbor puts forward his own 



118 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

" bit of land" as " a right smart chance better" for the pur- 
pose desired than any other tract thereabouts ; and so this 
narrow, false-hearted, mistaken policy runs along the line, 
with of course here and there ' ' the exception that proves 
the rule." 

An amusing and instructive case in point was brought 
to our notice only a short time ago. A stranger, a man of 
wealth, energy, and intelligence — such a^ one as Florida 
most needs to develop her immense latent powers — agreed 
to purchase a certain piece of land, if, on seeing it, he found 
it as represented. Well, he saw the land, and was thor- 
oughly satisfied ; shortly thereafter he was accosted by a 
man living close by : 

*' Ho ! stranger, I reckon you 're the man as 'lows to buy 
Chris Brown's land, eh ? " 

" Yes ; it's a fine place, is n't it ? " 

Neighbor A, as we will call him, took off his cap, rubbed 
his head thoughtfully, looked up at the sky, then down at 
the stranger : 

" I don't like to go agin a neighbor, ye know," he said 
slowly, with a significant wink. 

'' Why, what is the matter? Isn't it good land?" 

* ' Well, that's as you takes hit ; 'taint no good for cotton 
nor cane." 

*' I want it for oranges, lemons." 

"Then hits as you find hit; 'taint never been tried. I 
know'd a man as 'clared he could play a flute ; did n't know 
he could n't till he'd tried, you see, and then he just squeaked 
awful — was n't no good." 

" But why do you think it is not fit for oranges?" 

*' Did n't say it twarent, stranger ! I aint 'goin' to be on- 
neighborly like, only I 'lows as wild oranges aint found 
only in swammocks, as that 'ud be the fittenest place for 
the sweet uns ! " 



*'WHAT WILL IT COST?" 119 

There did seem to be some sense in this argument ; so, as 
our stranger's contemplated purchase was not concluded, 
he went with neighbor A, who "did n't want to be onneigh- 
borly though," to view a "passel of hammock of his own." 

The stranger approved of the tract, and had almost de- 
cided in its favor, when neighbor B met him. 

" Stranger," quoth he, "I hear you're bound to take A's 
bit of sour swash." 

"Sour swash?" 

" Jes so ! I don't want to make no trouble fer a neigh- 
bor, but it's easy to see that bit of land 's sour swash as 'ud 
pizen a 'gator ! It's hammock, sure enough, but it ud take 
a fortun' to dreen it fer any use. Now, there's a bit of 
pine land, high and dry, that's just the thing you want ; 
easy to clear and no dreenin'." 

Had he, B, any of this vaunted high pine for sale ? 

"Well, yes, he had; and if the stranger wanted — he 
didn't like to be onneighborly ; but if he must, why he 
must." 

So the perplexed stranger looked at this pine land, and 
really liked it better than any he had seen yet ; he was 
glad he had looked further. This land was all right, that 
was certain. 

Then along came neighbor C, a better educated man than 
the others, capable of forming an opinion and giving a 
reason for it. 

"Don't take that pine land," he advised. "There is 
hard-pan and clay under it ; hard-pan kills the trees, and 
clay is cold ; the worst of it is, you never can tell till your 
grove is old enough to bear, then the roots reach the hard- 
pan or clay, and the trees just die, no help for them, and 
there you are, money and years all gone for nothing ! " 

Neighbor C (of course) had just the right kind of land 
to sell; but neighbor D quietly cautioned the stranger 



120 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

against it, as ' ' scrub hammock, and no account nohow. 
He had some himself, though, first-class." 

But the stranger shook his head sadly, and turned his 
back forever on that community, saying : 

** No, I will have none of your lands. Any one of those 
tracts would suit me ; I see thrifty, healthy trees on them 
all, but each one of you runs down his neighbor's honesty, 
and decries his neighbor's goods. I would not live and 
trade and visit among such men, if a grove was given me 
free." 

Now, good reader, perhaps you think this is an imagin- 
ary experience. Unhappily, we can not plead guilty, it was 
an actual fact, and its counterpart may be met with any 
day. 

"A word to the wise is sufficient," fvenez garde. 

The question is often asked, " What does good orange 
land cost ? " 

Well, as our friend, neighbor A, just referred to, re- 
marks: "That's as you takes hit," whether your choice is 
pine land or hammock ; remote from or near to good trans- 
portation facilities. 

Our own experience and judgment, and that of the ma- 
jority of Floridians, is decidedly in favor of pine land, as 
a general rule, for a permanent, healthy home, where one 
can be happy and contented. 

An important consideration to most settlers, and one 
that would be paramount, were all other things equal, is 
the fact that it costs much less than hammock, not only in 
the actual purchase money or " first cost," but in the after 
preparations for the reception of the coveted orange grove, 
the Alpha and Omega of the Floridian's aspirations. 

Hammock land is almost invariably found stretching 
back from the shores of the large rivers and lakes, joining 
a belt of rich land, varying in depth from a half mile, or 



*'WHAT WILL IT COST?" 121 

less, to three or four miles. And here, and only here, are 
found the wild sour orange trees, either scattered thinly 
about amidst the giant oak, hickory, bay, magnolia, and 
palmetto trees, or else growing so closely together as to form 
those famous wild groves of which every one has heard and 
read so much in these latter years of the newly awakened 
interest in orange culture. 

Happier than they knew were those fortunate first-com- 
ers, whose early appearance on the field enabled them to 
homestead the land on which these latent gold mines were 
"wasting their sweetness on the desert air." To them it 
was given to secure, for the nominal sum of fourteen dol- 
lars, one hundred and sixty acres of rich lands, frequently 
with hundreds or thousands of noble orange trees flourish- 
ing in their midst, and all they had to do was to clear away 
the underbrush, bud the wild stock with the sweet orange, 
and lo ! in three or four years they were independent men, 
and in nine years rich men, with the smooth stream of 
their wealth constantly widening and deepening as time 
rolled quietly onward. 

Those ' ' good old times " are gone by ; the area of wild 
groves was always limited, extremely limited — and now 
they are things of the past ; tamed, domesticated, brought 
into subjection under the conquering march of civilization. 
A few, a very few, are left still, but they are scattering, 
and would not have existed so long, but that they lie so far 
away from transportation centei'S as to be useless for years 
to come. Hammock lands, after passing from the State 
and General Governments into private hands, have always 
been held at much higher prices than the pine barrens, and 
this not entirely because the former are the richer lands, 
but because also of a natural law which operates in the 
commercial world wherever man buys and sells. 

When the demand for an article is in excess of the sup- 



122 HOME LIFE 1-^ FLOEIDA. 

ply, the owners of that article reap the inevitable results 
of higher prices. Obviously, the supply of hammock land, 
especially of that accessible to transportation lines, is ex- 
tremely limited, and even if the demand were much less 
than it actually is the supply would still run short ; there- 
fore hammock lands are always held at rates from five to 
ten times higher than pine lands, which exceed them in 
area in yet larger proportions. 

The relative merits of these two classes of Florida lands 
is a question much agitated at present, with the great pre- 
ponderance of opinion in favor of the pine lands. 

Here and there we find tracts of high hammock on the 
borders of our great lakes where the shores are bold and 
sandy, and the miniature waves come rolling upon a clear 
white beach, from which the hammock land rises high and 
dry, with a mixture of sand in its loamy soil ; no rotting, 
malaria -breeding vegetation here — no marsh, no low, wet 
spots. 

Now, no one need to be afraid to reside on such a spot 
as this, if he will just clear ten or twenty acres of the dense 
growth around his dwelling, and give free admission to 
those revivifying influences, sunshine and pure air. We 
know of many such homes along the shores of Lakes Har- 
ris, Griffin, Eustis, Apopka, Kingsley, Santa Fe, and other 
of our large lakes, and they are healthy as our pine-land 
homes and very beautiful, with an outlook for miles over 
the clear sparkling waters of these lakes, with their emerald 
green borders rising abruptly from the shores. Only re- 
cently we stood ,on the portico of one of these favored 
dwellings, and gazed out over Lake Santa Fe, as on a beau- 
teous picture of peaceful fairy land. 

But not to every one, no, not to one in five hundred, is 
such a favored location possible. The majority must be 
and are content to dwell in the '' piney woods," with their 



"what will it cost?" 123 

healthful, balmy fragrance, and the sparkle of small, clear 
water lakes or lakelets gleaming like mirrors through the 
pines. 

Undoubtedly, hammock lands are the richer lands at the 
start, but their fertility is of a deceptive sort ; that is, as 
we have already intimated, it is not lasting. 

Trees and vegetables grow finely for several years, but 
after that every year increases the need of fertilizing ham- 
mock land, while with pine lands it is just the reverse ; 
they are poorer at the outset, but improve steadily with 
each year's cultivation. 

Then, too, as we have also said before, hammock land is 
much more expensive than the pine ; where the latter can 
be had of the best quality, for from ten to twenty dollars 
an acre, the former is held at fifty to seventy-five or even 
several hundred dollars. 

The expense of clearing the land preparatory to cultiva- 
tion must also be taken into account. 

The hammock is full of underbrush, young trees, vines, 
roots, and palmetto ; all these must not only be cut down, 
and either burned or piled up to decay, and furnish by and 
by nourishing food for the future grove, but the number- 
less roots must be grubbed up at no slight expenditure of 
time or money ; time, if the settler is a strong man, able 
and willing to work ; money, if he has to hire the clearing 
done for him. 

It does not cost less than thirty dollars, oftener fifty, to 
clear an acre of hammock land, as it should be cleared ; 
and for a year or two afterward the fight against the up- 
springing roots must be waged unceasingly or else the clear- 
ing will go back to its original state, and all the toil and 
money already expended be thrown away. 

In clearing a piece of hammock for a grove, it is only 
the underbrush that should be got rid of entirely ; some 



124 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

of the grand old oaks should be left standing to flourish as 
of old, before civilization had dreamed of intruding upon 
their time-honored domains ; the growing orange trees will 
need the protecting shelter of their wide-spreading arms as 
a shield from high Avinds, the too great mid-day heat, and 
from possible frosts. Very few realize the importance of 
this subject ; we shall have more to say about it hereafter, 
in its proper place. 

Two or three years ago pine lands could be bought in set- 
tled localities at from five to ten dollars an acre ; now, they 
are held at twenty to one hundred in the same places and 
for the same lands. 

There is an important point that should be borne in mind 
by every settler coming to this State, and that is, how he 
is to get his fruits and other crops to market, and where he 
is to buy the provisions necessary for his family. 

These are questions that can not be too carefully consid- 
ered, for of what use would the best lands and heaviest 
crops be to their owner, if he were compelled to let fruit 
and vegetables rot on the ground because there was no way 
of transporting them to a profitable market ? 

Or where would be the comfort of a home if every pound 
of cofiee, tea, sugar, and the host of other things indis- 
joensable to the well-being of a civilized family, were only 
to be had by hauling them by horse power over rough 
sandy lands for many weary miles ? 

And so, if good lands, inaccessible to transportation lines, 
either in the present or in the near future, should be offered 
to an incoming stranger at five dollars an acre, we would 
say to him : ' ' Refuse the offer, rather buy less land at 
quadruple the price, where the markets for your produce 
may be easily reached, where the necessities of life are at 
hand, and where you can obtain farming tools and fertiliz- 
ers without ruinous freightage." 



"what will it cost?" 125 

It is a fatal mistake to settle on land merely because it 
is nominally cheap ; really desirable pine lands can not be 
bought now-a-days, as a rule, at least from private owners, 
for less than twenty to fifty dollars per acre. 

There are still some good tracts of land scattered about 
to be bought from the State, or United States Government, 
for from one dollar and a quarter to two dollars and a half 
per acre ; but these and homestead lands — for which a five 
years' residence entitles the settler to a warranty deed — are 
becoming scarcer every day. 

In this matter of selecting lands upon which to make a 
home and a grove too much care can not be given. 

The class of land which is the most available and also 
the most desirable in all respects is that called " high pine 
land." The growth of timber on this land is especially, as 
its name denotes, pine, with here and there small oaks, 
shrubs, wild persimmons, hickory, and a few other trees, 
sometimes solitary, but more frequently in groups, and 
when the latter occurs it is called "scrub hammock." 

The rule is that when tall, straight pine trees are found, 
large in size, and about seventy to the acre, and no under- 
growth but the famed wire-grass, and a little palmetto, the 
land is first quality; where the small oak trees are scat- 
tered thinly about, it is second rate ; and where the oaks 
surpass the pines in number the land is less desirable, be- 
ing third rate. 

There is something to be said, however, as we have seen, 
even for the latter class. It is very poor at first, it is true, 
but it responds very quickly to fertilizers, and even the 
poorest of it can in time be brought into the highest state 
of cultivation and improved year by year. 

One does not require as much land for a farm in Florida 
as at the North, for several crops may be taken from the 
same acre in one year. If a moderate sized grove, say of 



126 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

five acres, is the desideratum of the settler, and just enough 
land besides to raise fodder for his horse and vegetables for 
his family, ten acres, inclusive of the grove, will be ample. 

There is only one way of clearing hammock land, and 
that we have already mentioned. There are, however, 
several ways of preparing pine land for cultivation. One 
way is to girdle the trees, Avhich deadens them, and puts 
an immediate stop to the great drain their wide-spreading 
roots make upon the plant food contained in the soil. 

The trees are left standing, and then the land is ready for 
fencing and plowing. In a few months the decaying bark 
and limbs begin to fall upon the ground, and continue to 
do so for several years, and the branches must either be 
carried away from time to time or else become an eye-sore 
and a constant annoyance in cultivation. 

The first cost of this method of " clearing" is very little, 
only about two dollars an acre, or even less ; but it is very 
likely to cost more in the end than it saved in the beginning. 

After a few years' time, when the orange grove is fairly 
under way, the deadened trees will begin to fall; after 
heavy winds or a soaking rain down they crash, now here, 
now there, and, as they are not noted for judgment, they 
are just as likely as not to come down on an orange tree 
and put it beyond the pale of recognition. And then it 
must be chopped up, and either hauled away or burned; 
the expense and trouble of doing which are just as great 
as they, would have been at first, plus the loss of some of 
your best orange trees. 

The claim that the dropping sap, bark, and branches 
of the pine trees, left to decay on the ground, furnish a 
valuable fertilizer, is a specious one ; and, even if one is 
willing to have his grove strewn over with branches that 
trip up his horse and interfere wdth the plow, the amount 
of nutriment thus given to the soil is so small that a few 



"what will it cost?" 127 

cart-loads of rotten sap and grass, hauled from outside and 
spread around the orange trees, would far surpass it. We 
do not consider the gain, even considering the small first 
cost, at all compensates for the after-clap of falling pine 
trees and crushed orange trees. 

Another and a better way is to cut down the trees, chop 
them up in convenient lengths, pile and burn them. This 
method costs from twelve to eighteen dollars per acre, ac- 
cording to the number of trees to be disposed of, and of 
the amount of "small deer," in the shape of bushes and 
young oaks, to be grubbed up by the roots. 

But then the stumps of the pine trees are left in the 
ground, and it is a sad mistake to leave them there as so 
many do. They are not only a constant eye-sore — that is 
the least of it — but, no matter how often and how com- 
pletely the field is cultivated, these stumps scattered all over 
the grove will harbor ants and weeds, especially that curse 
of many cultivated fields in the South, called maiden cane 
grass. It is very difficult to eradicate that grass where it 
becomes established ; but it can be done by constant use 
of the cultivator for one or two seasons. Its roots pene- 
trate the ground to the depth of several feet, and every 
joint makes a new j)lant. For this enemy the pine stumps 
afford a strong rallying point, and it is simply impossible 
to destroy it while the stumps remain. 

Even if the maiden cane can be kept at bay as the 
orange trees grow, the stumps interfere with their proper 
cultivation. When the orange trees become large the 
stumps can not well be burned out on account of damage 
to the trees. They must be removed by cutting out, which 
is A^ery laborious and expensive. 

Better, by far, to burn out the stumps before your trees 
are planted, and have your land clear and smooth with no 
broken lines in your avenues of orange trees. Stumps often 



128 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

stand just where you want to plant a tree ; therefore it is 
always best to have a clear course. It will cost from fifteen 
to twenty cents each to get out the stumps, but it is cheaper 
in the end. 

Another plan of removing trees, which costs less, and is 
quite as effectual as the other, is to attack the tree at once 
at the root. A hole is dug on one side of the tree, em- 
bracing about one half its circumference. The roots on 
that side are all cut off, fire is then applied, and when the 
tap root is burned off the tree topples over, dragging out 
the roots on the opposite side. So here are tree, stump, 
and roots got rid of all at one operation. It remains then 
to burn uj) the tree and fill up the hole, and the land is 
ready for the plow for all time to come ; no more falling 
branches, no trees, no stumps. 

This process costs from twenty to thirty dollars per acre ; 
not more, not so much, indeed, as first cutting and burn- 
ing the trees and then digging out and burning the stumps. 

The land cleared, plowing comes next in order. This 
can be done for three dollars per acre, not a high charge 
for breaking up new land, as it is no easy or quick work 
even in our light Florida soil. 

Rails for fencing are split from the pine trees, at a cost 
of one dollar per hundred. It is well to have the rails 
split before the trees are burned, as, among the trees cut 
down, there will be found many fit for splitting. No mat- 
ter how plentiful Avood may be for the time being, it is not 
wise to waste what will be needed later on. Another thing 
we would note in this connection : among the fallen pines 
will be found many logs suitable for household fuel, and 
these should be stacked up for future use. 

Hauling the rails and building the fence will cost fifty 
cents per hundred. The total cost of fencing one acre is 
sixteen dollars and fifty cents. 



"what will it cost?" 129 

And now, having answered the question of " What will 
it cost to clear and fence one acre ? " let us look at the 
next query : "What will it cost to build a house?" This 
is a question difficult to answer, for the same reason that it 
is difficult to give the exact size of the proverbial "piece 
of chalk." 

A poor man, one who is actually pressed by poverty, 
can do as many of our now wealthy settlers did — build a 
log house. No matter where or what land you may select, 
there is sure to be plenty of timber growing on it. 

With the aid of a negro laborer — who can be hired for 
from seventy-five cents to one dollar a day, according as 
he is "found," or "finds himself," in food — a strong man 
can cut down the logs, " skin," " notch them," and put up 
a single-room house, ready for the roof, in one week. The 
boards for roofing can be rived out in two days more, from 
pine or cypress logs. The rafters can be made with young 
saplings, stripped of bark, and the laths to support the 
shingling boards from still smaller saplings. There are a 
number of houses so constructed in every new vicinity. 
The roofing boards can be held down on the lathing by 
cross-pieces fastened by withes, but nailing is far better. 
Good riven cypress shingles, four and a half inches wide 
and eighteen inches long, can be had for four and a half 
dollars per thousand, delivered, within three miles. They 
make the best roof and will last a life-time. Unplaned 
boards for flooring can be had at the saw-mills for one dol- 
lar per hundred feet, hauling extra. The cost for a room, 
sixteen feet square, would be less than three dollars. A 
chimney can be put up against the house on the outside. 
The cheapest ones are built of sticks about two inches 
square and thirty inches long. They are simply laid across 
each other, forming a square, reaching above the roof, and 
are plastered inside and outside with clay or with mortar. 



•130 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Such a chimney can be built in one or two days at a cost 
not exceeding five dollars. Chimneys built of brick cost 
about thirty dollars for a one-story house. The preceding 
description applies to a rude and cheap house, but hundreds 
of families have lived comfortably in such for years, and 
hundreds are living so now, all over the State. 

And now for a better class house : Lumber is to be had 
at the mills for eleven dollars per thousand feet ; the haul- 
ing from three to six dollars per thousand, according to 
distance. Doors, sash, and blinds can be got from Jack- 
sonville, Feruaudiua, Gainesville, whichever may be most 
convenient. The necessary hardware can generally be had 
at the nearest country store. The prices are about twenty 
per cent higher than those of Philadelphia or New York. 

Carpenters' wages, by the day, range from two dollars to 
two dollars and seventy-five cents, according to the work- 
man's skill ; but building is usually done by contract. 

It is much the best plan to supply all your own material 
and pay your own carpenters only for their work ; if you 
leave them to find the building requisites, you will proba- 
bly have to pay them a considerable profit over the cost- 
price of the article used. 

Cypress shingles, as we have already said, are held at 
four dollars per thousand, delivered on the spot where they 
are to be used. 

House-building in such a mild climate as Florida is a 
very different thing from what it is at the North. Here is 
no need for the thick walls and winter-proof dwelling so 
necessary there. 

A tight roof is needed of course, but weather-proof walls 
are not indispensable, although desirable, as it is not al- 
ways ''summer time" even in Florida. 

There are occasional days in every month, from Novem- 
ber to March, when fires morning and night are very com- 



''what will it cost?" 131 

fortable things, and there are days when a good wood-fire 
in the stove or open fire-place is extremely grateful all day 
long, and then one feels a transient wish for a weather- 
proof house. But it is not often that this happens ; and 
all the rest of the year we want the pure fresh air to 
have access to every nook and corner of our semi-tropical 
homes. 

We have no cellars in Florida, though we see no reason 
against their practicability, where the location of the dwell- 
ing is high, and drainage good ; the houses are set up from 
the ground, one, two, or three feet, as we may choose, on 
stout pine blocks, segments of huge pine or oak trees sawed 
ofi* horizontally. It is claimed that there is not enough 
cold weather to chill the soil, and so a cellar would not be 
as cool a place for provisions as is a closet built of slats, 
or a wire-net safe, where the breeze has free access at all 
times ; and doing without a cellar makes building much 
easier and much cheaper. But we have seen one Florida 
cellar, and it was a cool, airy spot. 

We think the best plan for a Florida home is one that 
gives a wide hall through the center of the house, with 
rooms opening into it on either side. 

This same plan could be carried out in the second story, 
when such is desired, but, as a general thing, Florida houses 
are only one story, as there is always plenty of ground on 
which to "spread out" as much as one chooses, and down- 
stairs rooms are the coolest and pleasantest. 

Every house of the least pretension to comfort should 
have a wide porch on at least two sides, notably the south 
and west, and all the better if the porch be continued en- 
tirely around it. Our idea of what a true Florida house 
should be, is that of a broad-brimmed hat, and for the self- 
same reasons that make such a hat desirable in a warm, 
sunshiny day. 



132 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

It will convey to our readers a clearer idea of the actual 
cost of erecting a neat, comfortable home in Florida, if we 
give here the dimensions of such a house and its cost. 

A "box house" of rough lumber outside, and planed 
within, and battened inside and out, a porch on the east 
and south sides, a covered j)iazza, back, leading to the 
dining-room and kitchen, which are detached from the 
main building but join each other. This is the grand 
sum total of the building we will describe : 

The house is thirty-two feet wide by twenty-four deep, 
ceiling twelve feet high, a hall ten feet wide and twenty- 
four in length runs through the center from front to back 
piazza. 

Two rooms on each side open into the hall, the two front 
apartments are twelve by fourteen feet ; the two back 
rooms, ten by twelve; each apartment has two windows 
and two doors, one into the hall, one communicating. 

From the hall a staircase leads to an unfinished attic, to 
store away trunks and surplus goods, or it may serve for a 
servant's room, although, when one can afford it, a small 
outside room is preferable for this purpose ; one measuring 
ten by twelve can be put up for thirty-five dollars. 

Connecting the main building with kitchen and dining- 
room is a covered piazza twelve by fourteen feet, on which 
is built the provision closet, as aforesaid, and where also is 
the pump, close to the kitchen door. 

Housekeepers will appreciate the convenience of this 
arrangement, which should be much more common than 
it is. Usually the supply of water for household purposes 
is obtained by hoisting it from a well outside, by crank or 
pulley, a heavy task for one who is not strong. 

Crossing the piazza, we come to the kitchen, twelve feet 
by sixteen, and joining it at one end is the dining-room, 
fourteen by eighteen feet. 



''WHAT WILL IT COST?" 133 

Such a house as is thus portrayed, as comfortable a Flor- 
ida home as one need wish, will cost in the near neighbor- 
hood of one thousand dollars. 

A smaller and rougher but very habitable dwelling can 
be built for one half this sum, however. 

Lands, direct from the Government or State, may be 
purchased at from $1.25 to $2.50, and occasionally $7, 
per acre, but these chances are rapidly becoming things 

of the past. 

Inquiries regarding State lands should be addressed to 
the State Lancf Office at Tallahassee, while those regarding 
the United States lands should be sent to the Register 
United States Land Office at Gainesville. For Govern- 
ment lands write to the Department of the Interior, Wash- 
ington. 

Railroad lands are still abundant, and the incoming set- 
tler would do well to turn his attention in this direction, 
as, all other points being equal, they are held at lower 
prices, from $2.50 to $7 50 per acre, sometimes $10 for 
the best locations, good lands, and near actual or projected 
toAvns. 

By private owners all prices are asked, and what is more, 
obtained ; it depends somewhat on the whim or necessities 
of the seller, but still more on the quality of the land and 
its location, the latter governing prices even more than the 
former. Poor lands may be made fertile with cultivation 
or drainage, but a poor, inaccessible location can not be 
changed. 

Lands, pine lands, held by private owners, range in price 
from ten dollars to two or three hundred, while hammock 
ranges from one to five hundred dollars per acre. 

As to the cost of orange groves, while it is not within 
the province of our present work to go into details on this 
point, which has been fully treated of in our previous work 



134 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

on "Florida Fruits and How to Raise Them," a few lead- 
ing facts and figures with regard to an industry which is 
usually made the ' ' backbone " of the Florida home will 
certainly not be out of place. 

The State Land Commissioner, basing his statements on 
verified figures, puts the cost of five acres (a man of mod- 
erate means should not attempt more at first) set in trees, 
fertilized and cultivated for five years, at eight hundred 
and fifty dollars, and estimates the value of the property 
at that time, simply as an orange grove, at five thousand 
dollars. If the trees are choice budded fruit, and the 
location on a lake, or near transportation, or a town, its 
value is very much increased. 

Now, this estimate takes into account the cost of con- 
stant cultivation, which is one of the heaviest expenses 
the orange-grower has to meet. That this item will in the 
near future be almost, if not entirely, a thing of the past 
we firmly believe. 

Our own observations and experience, and those of 
others scattered here and there over the State, point con- 
clusively to the future orange grove as one of beautiful, 
thrifty trees growing happily, their tender surface rootlets 
neither torn nor mangled by the cruel plow or cultivator, 
with a thick turf of Bermuda grass nestling close up to 
their trunks, protecting the ground from sun-bake, enrich- 
ing it constantly and silently by the decay of its roots and 
tops, keeping down the noxious Aveeds, preserving an equal 
moisture and requiring only an occasional top-dressing and 
perhaps an annual hoeing around the tree. 

This is the grove that we see looming up in perspective. 
We have seen it in practice on our own grounds ; the finest, 
most thrifty trees we have — orange, lemon, pear, fig — are 
those that have been left undisturbed for several years, not 
even touched by a hoe, with Bermuda grass growing thick 



*'WHAT WILL IT COST?" 135 

and high all around them. Not only so, but the soil has 
perceptibly increased in rich dark humus simply from the 
natural decay of the grass, while a top-dressing gives all 
the fertilizing needed. ' 

When this fact, and fact it is, comes to be generally 
recognized, the cost of raising a grove "to profit" will be 
reduced to less than one half the sum required by the 
usual methods now prevalent, and the trees will be more 
vigorous. 

Now, as to purchasing a bearing grove : while the prices 
asked by the seller usually seem high to the purchaser, who 
is new to orange culture and does not, can not, realize the 
full and increasing value of that which he seeks to acquire, 
the latter may safely buy on a basis of one hundred dollars 
to a tree in full bearing. Ten thousand dollars is not a 
high price for one hundred bearing trees, and, if located 
near to transportation and in a healthy place, such a grove 
is really worth much more in actual money returns and 
advantages. 

Not only is there a rapid increase in value from added 
age and yield of the trees, but the land itself becomes more 
valuable from year to year, even independent of the crops 
that may be raised on it. 

There is no danger of the orange crop being " overdone," 
or of " prices going down below a paying point," which is 
a question frequently raised by the cursory observer. 

The idea is an absurd one on the face of it ; it would be 
just as reasonable to ask in real, sober earnest, if one acre 
of land was not in danger of raising more than the people 
of New York City could eat, for that is about the propor- 
tion of orange lands to the people wanting to eat the fruit 
they produce. 

Here is a calculation that speaks for itself, and shows 
what are really the available orange lands : 



136 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Acres. 

The State of Florida contains 38,000,000 

Above the 30th parallel there are lands " too 
cold" for oranges as a market crop, and 
better adapted to early and profitable vege- 
tables and other fruits than the orange, . 16,000,000 

In the Everglades, saw -grass region, and 
swamp lands of South Florida, there are, 
unfit for oranges and, if drained, far better 
for sugar, etc 10,000,000 

Then there are of third-class pine-lands, cy- 
press and other swamps, waste pine bar- 
rens, areas of rivers, lakes, ponds, creeks, 

and flat lands, too wet, etc 6,000,000 

32,000,000 

Leaving available orange land 6,000,000 

Of this but a portion will be planted in groves, for every 
one must leave land for house lots, gardens, and other crops 
of fruits besides oranges, and other plantings of various 
kinds, and towns must have lands, etc. Thus, actually, 
there is not more than 3,000,000 to 5,000,000 acres of 
land in Florida available for orange growing for market ; 
and people holding land which they can afford to keep 
need have no anxiety, as the lands will soon be absorbed ; 
and, while the population of the United States is increas- 
ing rapidly, the area of orange land remains unalterable. 
The consumption of oranges is rapidly extending, and 
lands in Florida must advance to many times their present 
prices. The purchase of land here, for the next fifteen 
years, can not fail to be a paying investment, even if left 
to lie idle. 



MAKING THE HOIklE. 137 

CHAPTER IX. 

MAKING THE HOME. 

It is now in order that we should proceed to the discus- 
sion of how to make a home. 

We do not mean a house, we have already discussed that 
matter, but a real, true home. One may have a very fine 
house, fitted with every comfort, and with gorgeous furni- 
ture and beautiful grounds, and yet it may utterly lack 
that repose and harmony and sensation of " coziness" with- 
out which a true, heart-satisfying home can not be made 
any where, even if all the members of the family that 
occupy it are genial, good-natured, and affectionate, and, 
as every one knows, these qualities are so important that 
without them there can be no home life at all, but only a 
restless unhappiness and a passionate longing for peace 
and kindly fellowship. 

They make up three fourths of a home, it is true, and 
with them one may be happy, even Avith the most incon- 
gruous surroundings, but still there will be a sensation of 
*' something wanting." 

There are costly houses scattered all over the country, 
elegantly furnished and full of luxury, but the moment 
you are ushered into their drawing-rooms, where the ex- 
pensive furniture is carefully swathed in cold-looking linen, 
and books, if not altogether absent, are, because of their 
handsome bindings, practically labeled " touch not, handle 
not," being stowed away under glass covers to be seen, not 
read, you feel a chill sense of uneasiness and draw a sigh 
of relief as you pass out again into the free and untram- 
meled air. 

Again, there are snug little cottages all about us, where 



138 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

every apartment, though furnished in the plainest manner, 
conveys an idea of comfort, ease, and home. 

Now, though we have few^ very fine houses as yet in 
Florida, we find this same difference in full existence. We 
have seen houses well built, with large rooms, halls, and 
piazzas, and all necessary furniture, the dwelling-places of 
wealthy people, which conveyed not the faintest touch of 
that home feeling so dear to us all. We have seen the same 
thing in other houses, where the owners had dwelt for years 
and yet had planted neither tree, nor vine, nor flowers, 
around them ; where chickens and pigs roamed in and out 
of the house at will, in and under the beds and tables ; 
sometimes a rough rail fence suffices to keep cattle at a 
respectful distance from the house, but often the house is 
dropped down in the piney woods without any fence at all. 
We passed such a house as the latter one day (our con- 
science forbids us to call it a home), and a woman arrayed 
in one scanty garment, a ' ' kaliker " dress, was singing over 
the wash-tub, near the door, while a sow and three of her 
progeny were visible from our point of view (a saddle) in- 
side the narrow entry ; at the door, half inside, were a cow 
and calf, and, roosting contentedly on the window-sill, were 
a half dozen chickens. 

The woman nodded at us with the customary " Howdy !" 
and we rode on with a wonder and a half-sigh — the wonder 
at the evident contentment of that woman under such a 
state of existence, and the half-sigh because some of the 
rest of us could not be content with it also — it involves so 
little work and so little expense — at least, until our groves 
come into profit; for that little significant word, " until," 
covers for many a Florida settler a multitude of weary 
days and months, aye, and years, if he has not the where- 
withal to meet current expenses or raise other fruits and 
vegetables while waiting the happy climax to his labors. 



MAKING THE HOME. 139 

It often happens to such an one to wish that human 
creatures could do as the alligators and water-turtles, 
namely, go down into the mud and lie dormant until the 
sun shines, or, what means the same thing here, until the 
grove has arrived at full bearing. 

And now we hear a voice at our shoulder more truthful 
than complimentary, '* Goosie, goosie gander, whither will 
ye wander?" It is true we have strayed from our path. 
Let us go back to our present task of making a home, such 
an one, we mean, as we find here and there, with neat 
fences, clearly laid out walks bordered with oleander or 
other ornamental trees, with roses and other flowers scat- 
tered all around, wdth broad latticed piazzas, shaded and 
beautified by densely foliaged vines, mingled together in 
a joyous, happy-go-lucky fashion that is charming to see. 

Bona nox, evening glory, yellow jasmine, coral honey- 
suckle, and trumpet creeper, beauties, all of them, and to 
be had for the digging in the hammocks all around. Thun- 
bergia, cypress-vine, barclayana, evening jasmine, English 
ivy, honeysuckle, all these and many more, hobnob to- 
gether in riotous exuberance, and the glory and fragrance 
of their loving embrace must be seen to be realized. 

This is a type of the home we would have every lady to 
own who comes to live in our "Land of Flowers;" and 
she can easily have it, too, and in less time than one 
would suppose possible. To any one accustomed to the 
slow growth and yearly check for months of vegetable life 
in the North, the rapid, luxurious, and almost ceaseless, 
growth of Florida vegetation is simply wouderful. 

If you own so much as twenty acres of land, in some 
sections, it will go hard if there is not at least one large 
or small lakelet on the tract. If it be a deep one, at least 
in the center, it will never go dry like a cow ; build your 
house near by, not very close, else in wet weather the water 



140 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

may creep up to your door — but so as to have a full view 
of the clear, sparkling water, and the beautiful water-lilies 
that are either already there or cau be brought from more 
favored lakelets in the neighborhood. A little water, in 
one pure, mirror-like spot, will do wonders for a landscape ; 
in fact, one feels the want of a principal element of beauty, 
if it is not to be seen. 

As we have intimated, there are few tracts of twenty, or 
even ten acres, in the Lake Regions of Florida, where a 
lake of some kind may not be found. From the second- 
story of a house at the writer's hand, for instance, no less 
than ten such sheets of water, some larger, some smaller, 
are visible, their extent altering greatly as the wet or the 
dry season prevails. 

"Are they not unhealthy?" we are often asked. No, 
not at all ; they are vastly different from the ponds scat- 
tered widely through many of our Northern States, which 
have mild bottoms, and in which the water becomes stag- 
nant and malarial ; our numerous Florida lakelets (we 
don't degrade them by calling them ponds) are formed by 
hollows of different sizes becoming filled with water during 
the copious rains of summer. Sometimes they are origin- 
ated and fed by springs ; but, however this may be, the 
fact remains that their bottoms are composed entirely of 
sand, clean, pure, and unfouled by mud. The water con- 
stantly filters down through the sand, and a constant evap- 
oration also takes place from the surface, so that its mass 
is always changing and never stagnates. 

Many a time have we ridden through these little lakelets 
when the water was so deep as to necessitate lifting our 
feet to our horse's back, and yet the white sand and short 
grass at the bottom were almost as plainly to be seen as if 
uncovered. 

When the dry time comes, and they begin to recede from 



MAKING THE HOME. 141 

their shallow margins, there Is nothing left exposed to de- 
cay in the sun and air, as there is on the great lake shores, 
only clean sand, or perhaps a few blades of timid, slender 
grass, looking as if frightened to death at its return to dry 
land. 

There are no healthier localities than those containing 
these numerous little sheets of water, and they are not 
only ornamental, as we have said, but useful also. The 
horses, cattle, chickens, ducks, dogs, all the domestic fam- 
ily, in fact, regard them with high favor as fashionable 
watering-places, and frequent them accordingly, especially 
durinsf the summer season. The horses and cattle browse 
around their margins, and indulge in frequent baths, the 
chickens have a fine time chasing insects and hunting little 
frogs ; the ducks paddle about to their hearts' content, only 
slightly demoralized when, once in a while, a wicked alli- 
gator pokes up his head and one of their number reluc- 
tantly accompanies him on his return trip to the bottom of 
the lake. The dogs lap up the pure, clear water and go 
I heir way rejoicing, and the cats, when disgusted with the 
table kept by their owners, go down to the shore and step 
on the damp ground wdth a comically reluctant, dainty 
tread, and sitting down at the water's edge, with a silent 
protest against such useless moisture, wait patiently, with 
pricked up ears and intent gaze, until a luckless fish swims 
within the fatal radius of those lurking claws, and then, 
presto ! a paw goes under the water, like a flash, and the 
fish comes out, bewildered with its sudden rise in the world. 

That last word gives another phase of the usefulness of 
even our smaller lakes, for there is scarcely one that lacks 
a supply of fish. The so-called trout, which are really 
black bass, are found in nearly all, and the brfeam, sunfish, 
warmouth perch and cat-fish, abound. They are all fine 
fish for the table, their flesh sweet and firm. The trout 



142 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

often attain a weight of from twelve to fifteen pounds, the 
others are smaller and good for frying ; often also, in these 
small lakes, a small fish abounds, so tiny as to be cooked 
like the smelts, or frost-fish, of the Northern winter mar- 
kets, namely, in one indiscriminate mass. They taste very 
much like them too. 

Then there are turtle in these lakelets, real genuine tur- 
tle. We don't claim that they are green turtle, but never- 
theless they are excellent eating, either in soup, a plain 
stew, or cooked a la terrapin. There are two kinds. One, 
a very handsome fellow, with an arched, hardshell back, 
boldly marbled in orange and black. He is a mild, inof- 
fensive creature, and very pleasant to interview in the soup 
tureen. We can't speak so highly, socially, of his brother 
turtle, who is an unmitigated scamp, with a broad, flat, 
leathery back, hard in the center and pliable at the edges, 
and who wears a dirty, blackish, wrinkled coat. He is not 
mild nor inoffensive ; try him once, and you wdll see in 
what manner he will dart his long, horny, tube-like snout 
at your fingers. He always receives very respectful treat- 
ment from his captors until the opportunity, carefully 
watched for, arrives, of cleaving the threatening snout 
from his ugly body, or, perchance, he ends his days in a 
pail of boiling water, which, after all, is the best and most 
merciful way of ending them. 

The largest we have seen of either of these turtles 
weighed about ten pounds, and they, with the fish, are no 
despicable gifts from the little lakelets to the family table. 
How are they caught? Well, we wdll come to that in due 
time. 

Very often, too, water-fowl frequent their smooth waters, 
and from this source a sportsman can furnish many a wel- 
come dish for the household. In front of our modest home, 
with a short avenue of oleander trees leading down to its 



MAKING THE HOME. 143 

grass-grown shore, is one of these little lakes we have been 
talking about. It does not cover an acre of ground at its 
largest, and in dry times it shrinks to a deep half-acre basin 
in the center, whose sides are evidently perpendicular like 
a well. It never contracts more than this, and is probably 
fed by springs. 

The water is as clear as crystal, and in calm weather re- 
flects the sun and clouds like a burnished mirror, while, in 
windy times, it is wonderful to see how the miniature waves 
rise up so as to thump and toss our little boat and curl 
their white caps all around it. Our circular w^ater mirror 
has a veritable frame of its own of green and gold, a clear, 
unbroken circle, about six feet wide, of a curious aquatic 
plant with small leaves floating on the surface of the water, 
and bright yellow flowers rising above them, clearly de- 
fining the edge of the well-like, permanent basin. 

''I would give five hundred dollars for a lakelet like that 
on my place," exclaimed a less fortunate neighbor whose 
water-mirrors will sometimes shrink away to nothing, leav- 
ing a grass-grown hollow that cattle delight in. And this 
wish is expressed, not on account of the beauty of that 
little shining spot, but because of its permanency, and 
hence its value to its owner, should he desire to water his 
grove or truck gardens in a dry time by the aid of a wind- 
mill, or use it for the supply of his house. In this connec- 
tion, five hundred dollars is a low estimate of the value of 
a permanent lakelet, large or small, near one's grove and 
house. 

Few persons realize the vast utility and comfort of pos- 
sessing a sure, never-failing water-supply, by means of a 
windmill. A windmill, to the masses, is an ''unknown 
quantity," a thing of complexity, of mystery, of heavy, 
unprofitable expense. But we would urge an earnest con- 
sideration of this subject upon our readers. 



144 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Even where not desired for large irrigating operations, 
a small size windmill would vastly increase the comfort of 
a whole household, ease the burdens of the housewife, and 
insure the safety of the house in case of fire. 

It could also be utilized to bring w^ater to the barn-yard, 
to irrigate the home vegetable garden or strawberr}^ patch ; 
in fact, the uses to which a never-failing supply of w^ater 
could be turned are legion ; yet any one of them would 
be worth the whole cost of obtaining such a supply. 

The added comforts a windmill could contribute to the 
home life of the Florida householder are manifold and will 
be easily seen by any one who j^auses to give the subject 
due attention. 

Realizing its importance in this connection, we have 
looked well into the matter of windmills, and have found 
that while there are several makes on the market — all claim- 
ing (of course) to be the best — there is one that stands 
pre-eminent, as not only being more simple, durable and 
effective — moving and pumping, just as it is set to do, 
whether the wind blows a gale or a zephyr — but, has never 
yet been dismounted, even by the fierce western tornadoes, 
when every other kind of windmill exposed to them went 
down to the ground in sorrow and sadness. For this fact, 
and also for its superiority, we have the testimony of those 
who have proved its sterling qualities for years. 

This particular windmill is rightly named the "Cham- 
pion," and is manufiictured by R. J. Douglass & Company, 
of Waukegan, Illinois, one of the oldest and most reliable 
establishments in the United States. They are also, we 
would remark, in passing, manufacturers of pumps of all 
kinds, and notably of the "Star" pump, which is unsur- 
passed for family use. 

Seeking reliable data, as to the actual cost of such a mill 
as would meet all the points we have named, we went to 



MAKING THE HOME. 145 

the " foimtain-liead," and here is the estimate furnished: 
**A windmill erected on a tower, thirty to thirty-five feet, 
which is high enough for Florida, would cost about sixty- 
five to seventy-five dollars. A tank to hold two hundred 
barrels of water, about fifty dollars. A pump, all com- 
plete, one of the best for a well twenty-five to thirty feet 
deep (or for a pond), about twenty dollars or thereabouts. 
Probably the total cost of this outfit Avould not exceed one 
hundred and fifty dollars. Of course larger mills, more 
tanks, and larger ones, can be put up at an additional cost. 
A person can bring his water-supply up into the thou- 
sands, or he can make it very cheap." 

Those of our readers who desire still further information 
can obtain it from the manufacturers. 

As a rule, the shores of Florida lakelets incline so grad- 
ually to the deep water in the center that fishing from the 
shore is out of the question, unless one chooses to follow 
the example of the small boy, and wade out waist-deep. 
A prettily painted skiff* riding on the Avater adds much to 
its beauty, but where such can not be procured, a home- 
made flat-bottomed scow answers almost as well for fishing. 

As we said awhile ago, it is better to put your house 
back a few hundred yards from the lakelet, not only for 
the reason then given, but because, if you have no other 
conveniently near, you will either have to shut out your 
chickens, horses, and calves from its enjoyment, or else lay 
aside all idea of building up a cozy, home-like surrounding. 
Chickens, horses, and calves don't agree with flowers, trees, 
and vines. Fence off* a small space around the house ; if 
regularly made pickets can not be had (and this is the case 
in many parts of the State), shingling laths from the near- 
est saw-mill, cut into five-feet lengths, make an excellent 
substitute, painted or whitewashed. We say a small space 
advisedly, because unless one is able to keep a man or boy 

10 



146 HOME LIFE IN FLOKIDA. 

constantly employed among the flowers and small fruit 
trees and grass j^lats around the house, the weeds will 
gather headway and soon choke the more delicate plants to 
death, and that wicked, irrepressible sand-spur grass, with 
its tall tufts of sharp, stiff, hooked points, that puncture 
like a needle, and hold fast with a tenacity of purpose 
that we might admire under other circumstances, will 
quickly take possession of the territory and make pedes- 
trians unhappy, especially those who are unfortunate 
enough to wear skirts. One might well liken these van- 
dals of the Florida soil to an uneasy conscience, ' ' their 
prick" is sharp enough surely. 

They are called "spurs" rather sarcastically it w^ould 
seem, since their effect is to retard progress rather than to 
spur it on. They are bad enough in the field or grove, 
but they become intolerable around the house, and so, 
since they and other obstreperous weeds flourish during 
nine months of the year, and require constant watchful- 
ness to keep them under subjection, it is better to throw 
most of the battle ujjon the plow outside of the garden 
gate ; for, in a family where the means are wanting to hire 
a man or boy by the month, the burden of keeping such 
"useless trash" as flowers or vines in order will be cast 
by the busy men folks upon their more delicate companions 
who are more alive to their actual utility as home attrac- 
tions. 

Those who have come from the old-settled, thoroughly 
civilized portions of the North or West, or indeed of the 
South, will almost inevitably experience a sense of dismay 
and hopelessness at the prospect of the long struggle be- 
fore them, when they behold a wilderness of oak or pine 
trees rearing their heads aloft on the very spot selected for 
their home. Where a place can be purchased with im- 
provements already started it is a great gain ; but the ma- 



MAKING THE HOME. 147 

jority can not secure such an one, and so must carve their 
own home out of the virgin forest. Nor is this such a 
dreadful undertaking as it appears at the outset, the trees 
and vines grow so rapidly, and it is such a pleasure to 
watch their increase and note how steadily order is form- 
ing out of chaos and comfort and beauty marching to the 
front. 

We know all about it, because our own home was started 
amid a forest of tall, deadened trees, with a straggling 
field of corn growing in their midst, and sand-spurs so 
luxuriant that every step was painful and almost impossi- 
ble until a plow had turned under the obnoxious vandals. 
The white, ghostly-looking trees had to be hewn down, cut 
up and rolled away in piles to be burnt, the stumps also 
grubbed and burned out, and the corn laid low before the 
carpenters could even lay the foundation for the house. 

The kitchen, which is generally detached from the main 
house, was built first, and the two members of the family 
who preceded the rest in their flight from the chilly ^^orth 
lived therein, cooking on an oil stove out of doors for two 
months. The room was commodious enough, twelve by 
eighteen feet ; but for a dwelling, after a large, three-story 
city house, with all modern conveniences, was a somewhat 
bewildering change, and the wild surroundings of a native 
forest, and the rat-tat-tat of hammers on the main house, 
and the thud of falling trees all day, the weird glare of a 
hundred fires illuminating the landscape at night, flashing 
back from that little mirror we have spoken of— all these 
things added not a little to the oddity of a novel scene, 
until irresistibly arose the recollection and personal apjDli- 
cation of the famous nursery rhyme, of the "Little old 
woman who fell asleep on the king's highway," who, bewil- 
dered by the curtailment of her skirts by a peddler while 
she slept, exclaimed : 



148 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

" * If I be I, as I hope I be, 
I've a little dog at home, and he knows me; 
If I be I, he will wag his little tail. 
If I be not I, he will bark and he will wail.' 

" Home went the little woman, all in the dark, 
Up jumped the little dog, and he began to bark; 
The dog began to bark, and she began to cry, 
'Oh, lawk! oh, mercy! this surely can't be I!'" 

When the house was finished, every one went to work 
to ' ' fix up" and transfi:)rm the crude elements into a com- 
fortable, home-like place ; the stronger arms went to dig- 
ging out and burning out stumj)s ; and, in a few months, 
one pair of arms — unaccustomed to such work, too — dis- 
posed of over three hundred of these unsightly hindrances 
to cultivation. The weaker hands found full employment, 
first, in placing in order furniture, pictures, busts, brack- 
ets, and various knicknacks that tell so much of the re- 
finements of a true home, wherever it may be or however 
humble; and, a little later, in directing the formation of 
flow^er-beds and walks around the house, and setting out 
roses and budding plants ; in rooting and planting oleander 
slips ; in sowing thunbergia and other rapid-growing vines ; 
in procuring from the neighboring hammocks yellow jas- 
mine, creepers, scarlet honeysuckle, bona nox, and other 
thrifty vines to the manor born. 

They all looked very small and puny at first, and it 
seemed almost ridiculous to hope to see the oleanders be- 
come trees, or the vines cover the lattice-work around the 
porch, or to dream that the two-feet-high orange trees, set 
out from a grove near by, would ever be large enough to 
support one orange, not to say thousands of that luscious 
golden fruit. But, in three years from the time this work 
of creating a home out of the wilderness was commenced, 
the oleanders towered aloft higher than the roof and min- 



MAKING THE HOME. 149 

gled their fragrant pink flowers across the carriage way. 
The roses, that came to us in cigar-boxes, ran riot over 
frames and covered one end of the house, reaching above 
the attic window at the peak of the roof and disputing the 
march of a no])le English ivy ; verbenas covered the ground 
in hixuriant masses, petunias flourished and bloomed, 
sometimes becoming perennials, while, for six months or 
more of the year, phlox of all conceivable colors and 
shades made the ground one brilliant mass of color, sow- 
ing itself season after season, just as buttercups, dandelions, 
violets, and daisies dot the fields at the North. The vines 
had clambered to the very top of the lattice in one tangled 
mass and spread out below into a dense mass of foliage. 
The evening jasmine towered above the piazza roof, shading 
one end completely, and filling the air with its delicate fra- 
grance, almost too powerful, however, as the sun went down. 

More important than all, the back-bone of a Florida 
home, the orange trees, had aspired above their two-feet 
stature into goodly trees of eight to ten feet high ; lime 
trees, one foot high when planted, towered to the attic 
windows and were loaded with fruit ; guavas, raised from 
seed sown two years before, bore fruit enough to supply 
the^ table ; Florida lemon trees were loaded with yellow 
fruit, and some fine budded sorts were in bloom. 

All this in three years from the wilderness, with no com- 
mercial fertilizers, and on exceptionally poor soil. So you 
see it is not so fearful a thing as it looks to be, this making 
a home in the Florida woods. 

We have not thus related our own experience from ego- 
tism, but because we could better thus depict the methods 
and result of intelligent, refined labor, and so dispel the 
dread that is doubtless felt by many would-be Florida set- 
tlers at the idea of starting a new home out of virgin ma- 
terials and on virgin soil. 



150 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

As soon as the novelty wears off, and one "gets useji" 
to the inevitable differences in the new mode of life, the 
work of carving out the home, with all its varied sur- 
roundings, becomes one of fascinating interest, which 
grows deeper month by month, as the plants and trees rise 
up and testify their thankfulness for kind treatment. 



HOSIE SURROUNDINGS. 151 

CHAPTER X. 

HOME SURROUNDINGS. 

One of the hardest things for a Northerner to bear, on 
first coming to Florida, is the absence of the beautiful 
green turf and lawn so familiar to his sight that no coun- 
try home seems half a home without this grateful resting- 
place for the eyes. We are used to seeing it all around 
our old homes and in great fields all over the land, and be- 
cause we do not see the same in this newly-settled country , 
the cry has been raised, "Grass will not grow in Florida." 
Now that is a great mistake, and a great injustice done to 
a State that only wants a chance given her to show what 
she can do in the way of raising grasses. 

If the fine lawn grasses, so abundant now in the old-set- 
tled Northern States, are indigenous and grow of themselves 
just where they are wanted, as some unreasonable people- 
seem to expect they should do in Florida, how is it that 
the seedsmen advertise "lawn grass" seeds for sale, and 
the agricultural papers are so particular each year to give 
full directions as> to the proper way of preparing the ground 
and sowing the seed for making lawns? 

We have spent a great many months of our life in the 
country at the North, and we never yet saw a piece of 
woodland, that had never been cleared, plowed or planted, 
that could be utilized as a ready-made pasture sufiScieut 
for cattle. AVhere we see green fields and meadows, the 
grass has been sowed there ; it has not sprung up by magic, 
and it has required a good many years and a great deal of 
care to make a good pasture at all. Yet much-maligued 
Florida, even in her uncleared virgin woodlands, does raise 
a grass that subsists hundreds of thousands of cattle all 



152 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

the year round, so that their owners are never at one dol- 
lar of expense to keep them. 

This is the famous wire-grass that grows every where in 
the piney woods, tender and nutritious when young, but 
tough enough when old. It grows in tufts, starting out 
from the root in early spring, and keeps on growing as fast 
as the cattle eat it, until late in the fall, when it grows 
more slowly and the cattle are apt to leave it and seek the 
moss-draped hammocks for two or three months. 

Florida has other grasses too that are destined before 
long to supply her with all the hay she needs, some native, 
others imported. We shall speak of them by and by, but at 
present we shall only speak of those that make a close, 
thick turf, and can be made important factors in the 
work of making home beautiful. 

Carpet grass is one of them. It is a native of the coun- 
try, and makes a low, tolerably close mat of green, but it 
does not grow evenly as a lawn grass should do, nor will it 
endure uninjured even our light winters, so we do not very 
much approve of carpet grass. We want something bet- 
ter and more permanent around our houses, and we find it 
in Bermuda grass. This is a fine, dark-green turfy grass 
that is yearly growing more and more in favor ; the sole 
objection to it, either as lawn or pasture grass, being its 
habit of straying out of bounds, and this is a very small 
matter in comparison with its real value. We heard of 
Bermuda grass when we first came to Florida, and there 
chanced to be a small patch of it on our land, where a few 
roots, sent to the former owner from Kentucky, had been 
carelessly stuck down. The patch was not a yard square, 
and no more was to be had. But we wanted grass, no mat- 
ter how little it might be. We felt lost without our plat 
of green to rest the eyes on when sitting on the porch, 
so two small plats of the sandy soil were leveled ofi* and 



HOME SURROUNDINGS. 153 

inclosed by a border of strips, one on each side of the broad 
path leading down to the lakelet, and then the few roots 
of Bermuda were .planted in spots about twenty inches 
apart. They looked very ridiculous at first, " little dried- 
up wisps of straw," somebody called them ; with the bare 
sand dividing them from each other, it seemed hopeless to 
expect ever to see those desolate-looking plats covered with 
grass. But the '' little dried-up wisps," as soon as they re- 
covered from their astonishment at being moved, put up 
tiny green blades, and kept on trying to shake hands with 
their neighbors, until, in less than a year, they succeeded 
in embracing each other and uniting into one beautiful 
brotherhood of emerald-green turf. Another year, and so 
luxuriant was its growth, that the boundary strips were 
removed and leave given it to roam whither it would ; so, 
now, a fine large plat of deep green stretches out before 
the house, where, only a few years ago, was nothing but 
rough, weed-infested sand, hard to walk on, ofttimes pain- 
fully hot to the feet and glaring to the eyes whenever the 
sun was shining. The horses rejoice to graze on it when- 
ever permitted, the cows and calves eagerly munch the 
sweet hay it makes when cut, as it has to be several times 
each summer when it has grown up to be eight or ten inches 
high ; children love to roll on it, and visitors exclaim, while 
wonderingly rubbing their feet back and forth on the short, 
springy turf, " I've never seen any thing like this in Flor- 
ida." But there is no reason why it should not be seen all 
over the State, wherever there is a house occupied by peo- 
ple who want to make a home in the land of their adoption. 
In the particular case we have referred to the creeping 
propensities of the one-time small plat of green turf are 
so far from being regarded with terror that they are being 
encouraged, and a few years hence, from present appear- 
ances, from house to lakelet will be one beautiful lawn, 



154 HOME LIFE IN FLORID A. 

refreshing to the eyes and a thing of joy forever to the 
horses or calves that may be tethered thereon. There will 
be trees in its midst, orange, pear, peach, Japan plum, 
Japan persimmon ; but we have no fears of their being 
injured by the grass, rather will their roots be shaded and 
the ground made richer by the turf that w^ill decay around 
them, as nine years of experience has proved. 

We used to be told that a lawn of grass was impossible 
in the piney w^oods of Florida, but we laugh at that idea 
now. The Bermuda looks well all the year round, though 
during the months of December and January it stands still, 
and sometimes looks a little weary of well-doing, it never 
dies down entirely ; on poor soil it spreads slowly, on good 
ground, or with a top-dressing of stable-manure, ashes or 
bone-meal, it grows rapidly and tall. It crowds out obnox- 
ious weeds, and altogether lends so pleasant and homelike 
an air to one's garden that we can not too strongly urge 
the Florida settler to plant Bermuda, or, as it is really 
named after its introducer, a sea captain, " Permudy " grass, 
close to their houses. 

" Familiarity breeds contempt," and we are so accus- 
tomed to see grass around our houses at the North, wher- 
ever there is room for it, that we do not realize until we 
see an expanse of desolate, weed-grown sand, what a great 
factor it is in our lives. 

Looking at the great oleander trees, with their stiff, dark- 
green leaves and bright pink flow^ers, growing so luxuriantly 
without care all the year round "out in the open," it is 
hard to realize that this is the same plant that is so highly 
prized and so tenderly cared for in our Northern homes. 
There they are reared in boxes, and at the first approach 
of cold weather hurried off into the w^armer cellars, a 
specimen six feet high being regarded as a great possession. 

Here we see them every where, in every yard of any 



HOME SUEEOUNDINGS. 155 

pretensions, towering to the height of thirty feet and load- 
ed with blooms. Their growth is very rapid ; in four years 
on poor soil, a slip rooted in a bottle will become a wide- 
spreading tree ten feet high. Delicate vines, that will 
hardly grow at all in the chilly North, here flourish in the 
Avildest luxuriance, and in our milder winters do not even 
die down to the roots, and, when they do, set to work again 
in the spring just as if nothing had happened to them. 

It is well known that the most beautiful roses are the 
most tender, and can not be raised in the open air at the 
North ; but here they run riot, and not only so, but many 
of the tea-roses that are not supposed to be runners at all 
become regular runaways and clamber all over one's porch 
or lattice- work ; the glorious, fragrant queen of flowers, 
peeping out here and there, amid a mass of tangled vines 
in such unexpected places that vague ideas of a return of 
the days of miracles float about in one's mind, until a close 
examination reveals the runaway rose branch hiding slyly 
amidst the dense foliage of another plant. In fact, the 
ways of the denizens of the vegetable w^orld in Florida 
are full of surprises to the ignorant Northern mind, and 
their ways eccentric to the last degree. 

Morning-glories, that grow so luxuriantly in the North, 
are apt to become curious dwarfs here, miniature plants 
that trail for two or three feet on the ground and bear 
flowers proportionate in size. Cypress vines, so tender and 
shy of growth in the North, in Florida run rampant, climb- 
ing to the tops of fences and lattice-work, and then drooping 
downward like beautiful feathery cascades of scarlet and 
green, or else ramble at will over the ground in wild 
beauty, running up to the tops of tall weeds, then down, 
and here and there and every where. 

Tuberoses, lilies, and hyacinths, among bulbous roots, 
do well : and there are beautiful white lilies and pink lilies 



156 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

growing wild iu the hammocks, that flourish when trans- 
planted to a flower-bed. The bona nox (good-night) is a 
remarkably rapid-growing vine, with leaves shaped much 
like an ivy, set singly about three inches apart, on a slim, 
leathery, pliable stem; it is not only, as we have said, so 
rapid a grower that it is sometimes called "railroad ivy," 
but from the base of each leaf two or three stems start out, 
each of which seems to vie with the other as to which can 
travel the fastest. The result is a fine, dense shade in an 
incredibly short space of time, if one only has the patience 
to keep pace w^ith the long, down-reaching stems that hang 
helplessly downward, waiting to be put up like long hair 
that has no curl to it. 

The flower of the bona nox is as much of a curiosity as 
the vine itself. It is large and pure white, save for faint 
green bauds that mark it off* in several divisions. It is 
shaped like a shallow convolvulus, w^ith tips so decidedly 
pointed as, w-hen open, to present a star-like appearance. 
It is a handsome, waxy, showy flower ; but the most curi- 
ous thing about it is its manner of opening ; it don't do it 
at all in the quiet, respectable way, so fashionable in the 
world of flowers. It reminds one of those jerky, excitable 
people who move through life on springs, who bounce and 
thump over every little unevenness in their path, who can 
not work quietly nor open a door save with a jerk. This 
is just the way the bona nox behaves; from the seed to the 
flower it growls with one continuous rush, as though run- 
ning for a wager ; and the flower — well, you see the long, 
white bud, just as the sun has put his night-cap on and 
gone to bed ; it is about three inches in length, like a slen- 
der finger — you see it there among the thick, green leaves, 
lying perdu ; but the moment the bright luminary sinks to 
rest the bud awakes to a sense of its own impoliteness to 
the god of day, and lo ! in an instant, while you draw a 



HOME SURROUNDINGS. 157 

breath, the bud is gone and in its place a broad, white 
flower is nodding ''bonanox" "good night." It is like a 
transformation scene in a fairy tale, one moment a bud, the 
next, in the twinkling of an eye, the full-blown flower. So 
quickly does it open, that even when waiting on purpose 
to see it, one often fails, though sometimes a slight tremor 
is visible, as though a tiny elf were inside the bud, slyly 
casting loose its bonds. Opening at sunset, the flower re- 
mains open until the sun rises again. This curious vine is 
at the beck and call of every one, for it is a native of the 
hammock and readily propagated from the seed or root. It 
is the now famous " Moon Flower," recently introduced in 
the North and Europe. 

Another native vine, also a strong grower, and bearing 
a pink, convolvulus-shaped flower and a pretty shield-like 
leaf, is the " evening glory." This, like the bona vox, opens 
after the sun has sunk low in the west, unless when the 
day proves to be that rare thing in Florida, a thoroughly 
cloudy day, and then it remains open. 

The yellow jessamine is another favorite for home deco- 
ration, and abundant in the hammocks ; its quick growth, 
once it gets started, its abundant, permanent foliage and 
fragrant yellow flowers, and above all its scornful disregard 
of frosty weather, which makes sad havoc of the bona nox 
and evening glory, all combine to make it very desirable 
to train over our porches and arbors wherever needed. 

The clematis, coral honey suckle, Virginia creeper, and 
trumpet creeper, that seems to have no particular name, 
are also to be found in the hammocks, and all of these na- 
tive vines seem not to mind their transfer to pine lands, 
but thrive and grow apace. 

The question of shade is of no small importance in a 
land where three fourths of the year is summer, and where 
the sun shines nearly every day. Occasionally the new- 



158 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

comer is fortunate euoiigli to find a few large oak trees 
growing on the site he has fixed on for his house, and then, 
if the latter is built to the northeast of these and not very 
far away, their dense foliage will shield the southern and 
western rooms from the direct rays of the summer's sun, a 
blessing not to be despised. 

As to the pine trees that may be on the building site, 
they must come down, every one of them — nay, we are 
wrong, a lightning-rod is wanted, and tlfese tall pines 
make very effective ones ; there should be one left standing 
on each side of the house, deadened of course, and so far 
away (but no farther) that, if some day they come top- 
pling down before a lively breeze, they will not come 

Tap, tap, tapping at the door, 
Splintering that and something more. 

In planting shade trees, and this is one of the first things 
that should be done, no more beautiful and no more rapid 
growers can be found than the Texas umbrella tree and its 
kindred, but less symmetrical tree, the China-berrij. Their 
graceful, fern-like foliage adds not a little to the attractive 
looks of a Florida home. 

The mulberry is another rapidly growing shade tree. 
Two or three of these set on the south side of a house 
will, in a few years, give as dense a shade as one need de- 
sire; but these trees have the disadvantage of being at a 
certain season almost stripped of their leaves by an ugly 
worm that takes possession of them and well-nigh skele- 
tonizes them. The Russian mulberry, however, is exempt 
from this drawback, having no insect enemies. In the 
winter also they are apt to lose their leaves just as they do 
at the North. 

Where porches can not be afforded, and trees are being 
waited for, an excellent plan is to put up an arbor such 



HOME SURROUNDINGS. 159 

as is commouly used for grape-vines. Let it be parallel 
with the house, on the south or west, since these are the 
points where the summer's sun rests all the day long, and 
about eight to ten feet from it make a slatted roof sloping 
from the wall, and then plant rapid-growing vines of all 
kinds and train them up the arbor. It is really wonderful 
how quickly an efficient shade can be obtained in this sim- 
ple Avay ; and the effect is charming — the various shades of 
green, dotted all over with the buff, orange, and white of 
the thunbergias, the light yellow of the jessamine, and the 
vivid scarlet of the cypress ; one or two of the swift-grow- 
ing wild, or, better still, Scuppernong grape-vines will help 
greatly to make the green background for the vivid flow- 
ers, and by and by these grape-vines may be left in undis- 
puted possession of the arbor, furnishing not only a leafy 
screen, but an abundance of grapes. 

AVhile the vines are growing up the sides of the arbor, 
how about its roof? "We want shade under that too, want 
it at once to keep the sun, when high in the heavens, from 
peeping down inside our green wall and heating the wooden 
walls of our house. 

An awning stretched over the slatted roof is just the 
thing, not a water-proof one either, but one which will 
ward off the fierce rays of the sun while allowing the rain 
to pass through it, because you want a flower-bed under 
your window, and flowers need rain. 

Under such an awning as we have in our mind, and, we 
may add, shading our study, plants will grow that could 
not be raised in Florida without some such shelter ; here, 
under the reflected sunlight that sifts down to the ground, 
hyacinths, pansies, violets, fuchsias, and geraniums wax 
exceedingly beautiful and grow apace under the sheltering 
care of bagging stuff; yes, just those coarse bags in which 
oats, coffee, and corn are sold; rip them open, sew them 



160 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

together, nail them ou your slatted roof, and the work 
is done. 

Really, this subject seems inexhaustible, and in fact it 
is so, for there is none more important nor more suscepti- 
ble of new ideas than this, of making a home that will sat- 
isfy heart, mind, and body, and conduce to content, cheer- 
fulness, and health. 

We have already wandered round considerably out of 
doors; that is a way we have of doing in Florida, three 
fourths of our time at least, and consequently we are not 
quite prepared to go in yet. 

We have told somev\^hat of the wealth of beautiful flow- 
ers and vines that may be gathered around the house, and 
trained over the porches, but we have not yet mentioned 
one of the most important and by far the most fragrant, 
the evening jessamine. It is impossible for the Northern 
mind to conceive, from its home experience, the strong, 
thrifty growth of this much-prized plant in this genial 
clime. The plant, as it is known there, is a frail, delicate 
thing, of slow and precarious growth, almost impossible to 
rear outside of conservatories, ''a pampered, aristocratic 
darling," over whose wayward blossoming there is much 
rejoicing and much boasting. We remember that, a few 
years back, our whole family was summoned one evening, 
in great haste, to the house of a neighbor to view the bloom 
of the cherished evening jessamine, growing in a small 
flower-pot, and to enjoy the delicious perfume it exhaled ; 
we were made hapj^y by the presentation of a slip for root- 
ing, that we might ''go and do likewise." But now, to 
see this sdme fragrant, delicate night-bird among flowers 
in Florida! 

Three years ago a tiny slip, not six inches tall, rooted in 
a box, was set at the end of our ten-feet-wide piazza, for- 
tunately, as the result proved, it was placed near the mid- 



HOME SURROUNDINGS. 161 

die. At the present time, although several times it was 
killed back almost to the ground, that wonderful jessamine 
forms a dense, fan-shaped shade all over the end of the pi- 
azza a foot or more in thickness, and reaching several feet 
above the piazza roof. Almost all the year it is in bloom, 
and as darkness settles down upon the earth its little star- ' 
like flowers, gathered in clusters, peep out to see what the 
stars look like, and toss their fragrant greeting abroad in 
the air. Then, if never before, we understand what is 
meant by the '' air being heavy with perfume." Sometimes 
it is almost too powerful, and then we indulge a wish that 
our much-valued jessamine was a little further away ; but 
usually we are not disposed to quarrel with it. 

Of course the various plants and vines are the better for 
suitable food. We don't expect people or horses to work 
on day after day without nutriment, yet some people do 
expect their vegetable servants, which are living things as 
well, to exist and grow without food. Their requirements 
are modest: on hammock land they will ask no help 
for a few years, but on pine land they will need more at 
first than later on. There, you see, is the difference between 
hammock and pine land, as those who are ahead of their 
times are beginning to discover; one, better at the start, 
deteriorates; the other, poor at the start, constantly im- 
proves. If some muck, rotten leaves, cow-chips, or stable- 
manure, can be spaded into the flower-beds, before setting 
out the plants, so much the better; but if the plants are 
ready first, this can be done later on, although of course 
more care must then be exercised not to disturb the newly 
anchored roots. 

A wonderful tonic and invigorator of the growth of 
plants, not only in Florida, but every where, is a weekly 
or semi-weekly dose of liquid manure, made thus : two 
buckets, or twenty pounds, of stable-manure to one barrel 

11 



162 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

of water ; let it stand for twenty -four hours before using. 
It should be of the color of w^eak coffee when applied, and 
sometimes it is necessary to dilute it to attain this color. 
An ounce or two of carbolic acid is a great improvement, 
as it serves to discourage the ' ' Meddlesome Matties" so 
numerous among the insect families. 

A heavy mulch of leaves, grass, or pine needles, will be 
of double advantage, not only retaining moisture and an 
even temperature for the roots of trees and plants, but also 
preventing the continuous and excessive growth of weeds, 
which, proverbially rampant all over the w^orld, are not 
backward in asserting themselves in Florida. 

Weeds, we say; yet, after all, what are weeds? The 
fact is it all depends on where one stands. How we cher- 
ish and coax geraniums to grow, buying plants and seeds 
from the nurseryman ; yet in Australia, their native land, 
they are weeds, and regarded as nuisances. Our Northern 
florists advertise, among others, the rose geranium, and 
their customers think highly of them ; here, in Florida, 
they run rampant. Put a tiny slip from a bouquet into a 
Florida bed, and in a few months it will be trespassing on 
its neighbors' domains ; it will travel right and left, and 
actually become a runner. It keeps one busy lopping off 
great arm-loads of straggling branches ; but we don't quar- 
rel with it after all. The leaves are fragrant and form a 
pretty addition to bouquets ; the mass of green is always 
acceptable to the eye, and when a geranium is planted here 
and there about the grounds and trained into a mound- 
shape the effect is very pleasing; but still these gerani- 
ums are in a measure *' weeds" in Florida. 

And how the Northern gardener sows seeds year after 
year of the phlox and petunia. In Florida all that is 
necessary is to once sow a small paper of these seeds, and 
henceforth, year after year, phlox and petunias greet you 



HOME SURROUNDINGS. 163 

every where, nodding their gay little heads in the grass- 
plats, the flower-beds, and the corn-field; then, you see, 
they become ''weeds;" it is the same with the cypress vine, 
the bona nox, and in fact with almost every plant that has 
seeds. It is wonderful how persistently they sow them- 
selves broadcast There is a miniature portulacca, with 
pink floAvers about a quarter of an inch in diameter, a 
native of the soil, that is rather pretty, but becomes a 
nuisance because it degenerates into a weed and keeps one 
constantly on the war-path. 

The ease with which delicate plants, guarded and cher- 
ished at the North, perpetuate themselves in Florida, and 
imitate the example of the famous Topsy, who was not 
brought up, but ''just growed," is a source of surprise to 
natives of the more chilly States ; but it is readily traced 
to its cause, no freezing to kill the germs of the tender seeds. 

One of the most striking and distinctively tropical plants 
that one can find to set out in the Florida flower-garden 
is the native "yucca," or, as it is generally called, the 
" Spanish bayonet." This is a curious plant found in the 
hammocks, and bears transplanting to pine land very well. 
It is formed by a straight spine, as it were, on which are 
thickly set long, narrow, stifle-edged leaves, which droop 
downward and are armed at the point with a sharp spine, 
whence its name, "Spanish bayonet." It often attains a 
height of ten or twelve feet, and here and there, especially 
near the top, short stubs project, which, being detached 
and planted, will soon root and start out in life on their 
own account. This plant is an ornament of itself; but 
when, in June usually, it sends upward one or more tall 
stalks, three or four of them sometimes, thickly draped 
with large, pure white, bell-like flowers, Avhat shall we say ? 
It is then a beautiful object that one never tires of looking 
at, and its snowy plumes attract the eye from a long dig- 



164 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

tance. But we have dealt with the esthetic part of our 
subject long enough ; esthetic, yet not in this case useless, 
for one's home can not be made too attractive. 

But it must have its creature comforts too ; for we are 
of the earth "earthy." Not one of the least of these is 
the water-supply. There are a few houses in Florida whose 
owners have provided large tanks on the roof, into which 
water is pumped from a lake or well by means of a wind- 
mill, pipes leading from the tank conducting w^ater through- 
out the dwelling ; and these convenient contrivances can, 
as we have seen, be had by people of moderate means. 
In a few localities only, well-water is not good, being hard 
from the underlying limestone rock ; but all through the 
rolling pine lands the water obtained from the wells is 
soft and as pure as crystal; indeed, none better could 
be desired. During the summer months it is not as cool 
as the Northern taste could wish, bred up, as it is, with the 
idea that ice in the summer is a necessity. In fact, this 
lack of ice is at first one of the settler's greatest depriva- 
tions ; but with this, as with all things, time eftects a cure, 
and by and by the water seems to grow cooler, and rarely 
fails to quench the summer thirst. One could almost de- 
clare, after the first summer, that it actually has become 
cooler, so powerful is custom. It is possible, too, to make 
a decided change in the temperature of the water by keep- 
ing that intended for drinking in those large earthenware 
jars that are manufactured for the purpose, water-jars, 
they are called. The writer has seen them in use in South 
America, and they are equally useful in Florida ; drawing 
the water over night and allowing it to stand out where 
the night air will blow over it is a good way to secure a 
cool morning drink. In the fall, winter, and spring months, 
the water is quite cool enough for any one, and often 
"makes one's teeth ache." 



nOME SURROUNDINGS. 165 

As to the depth at which water is met with, it all de- 
pends on location. If dug on a decided knoll, thirty or 
forty feet are not uncommon before the water-level is 
reached. On lesser knolls (it is very unusual to see a 
Florida home that is not built on a "rise") water is often 
found at from eight to twelve feet. Of course the water- 
level varies with the wet or dry season, and so it is always 
best to dig, if possible, when the lakelets round about have 
reached their minimum. If you can not do this, the well 
will have to be deepened as the surrounding lakes lower 
their waters. It costs from fifty to seventy-five cents per 
foot to have the well dug, and until clay is reached the ' 
sides must be curbed and the cost of planking must be 
added to the sum total. Usually the well for family use 
will not altogether cost more than eight to ten dollars. As 
a rule, the bucket, rope, and pulley are the means em- 
ployed to obtain the water. Pumps are as yet a rarity, 
not quite so much as they were a few years ago, but still 
far more so than they should be, with a due regard for the 
patient workers on whom the burden of hauling up the 
heavy buckets from the depths of the well usually falls. 
There is quite work enough for the women of the family 
to do without this needless and heavy task being added. 

So rare were pumps when we came to Florida, that ours 
was the first one for a circuit of some miles. So great a 
curiosity was our modest "Cucumber," that our humbler 
neighbors made many a pilgrimage to its shrine and opened 
their eyes in wonder at the ease with which "the waters 
drawed up." They had never seen, nor heard, nor dreamt 
of such a wonderful thing. Our colored washerwoman 
had to be taught how to pump water, and her shy and 
awkward attempts to work the handle were ludicrous in 
the extreme. It was the same with the plowmen coming 
in from the field hot and thirsty. They would look help- 



166 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

lessly at " that 'ere queer post" guarding the well, and cau- 
tiously touch the handle and start back amazed at the ease 
with which it moved. Told to raise and lower it, they 
would lift it slowly a few inches and then as carefully drop 
it, looking bewildered when the spout, where they were 
told the Avater Avould appear, failed to deliver up its treas- 
ure. Then we would sally forth to the rescue, and a de- 
lighted grin would dawn upon their dusky faces as the 
clear, steady stream poured out. "Fore de Lawd, dat's 
powerful smart ! '' " Lawd's sake, hit is ! " After that we 
used to tremble for the life of our valves and piston as they 
rattled up and down to satisfy a strangely frequent thirst, 
so frequent that at last it compelled a remonstrance. 

We repeat, every well should be topped by a pump, and 
every pump should be handy to the kitchen, if not actually 
inside its walls. Every housewife's work is hard enough 
without the unnecessary addition of hauling up heavy 
buckets of water. A sink ujider the spout to catch and 
carry away waste water, with a ti'ough leading to a half- 
hogshead sunk in the ground, will be found of great ad- 
va^ntage, not only in saving the carrying away of heavy 
pans of dish-water, but also in preserving the latter for 
use as a fertilizer. Let the reservoir be emptied every 
afternoon toward sunset, the best time always for watering 
trees. Dash the soapy water around the fruit trees within 
reach, not too close to the tree, for the true feeding root- 
lets are some distance from it, and you will be surprised to 
see how the trees thus treated will outstrip the others. 

It is not a good plan to set out orange or lemon trees too 
near the house, yet we are all apt to make this mistake. 
The trees look so small when set out that it is hard to real- 
ize that in a few years' time they will be towering toward 
the house-top and their branches spreading wider and wider 
each year. 



HOME SURROUNDINGS. 167 

A case in point is that of a neighbor who, twelve years 
ago, in a country then unsettled, planted orange and lemon 
trees and built his house in the midst of them. For years 
past those trees have been crowding the house, so that it 
is entirely hidden save the roof, their branches rubbing 
against the walls, reaching through the open windows and 
so shutting out sunshine and air that now it has become 
imperative either to remove the too vigorous trees or build 
a new house further out in the one only direction left un- 
occupied by them, and the latter has been chosen as the 
lesser evil. 

Forty feet is quite near enough to set an orange or lemon 
tree to one's house ; nearer will surely be repented of sooner 
or later, and then the trees, bearing by that time, will have 
to be moved and all profit from them lost for several years 
to come, and only those who have tried it can .tell the im- 
mense amount of courage required to move a bearing tree. 
In point of fact, we would advise setting no lemon or 
orange trees near the house at all, unless it were a few 
scattering ones of the Tangierine orange, which is partic- 
ularly ornamental in shape and fruit. 

We would inclose a half acre or so in a neat fence sur- 
rounding the home, and lay it all out in walks, a carriage- 
drive circling around the dwelling, and in Bermuda or 
other lawn-grass. 

Then here and there we would have clumps of Texas 
China umbrella trees, mulberry trees, Russian preferred, 
Japanese persimmons, Japan plums or medlars, and a live- 
oak or two. 

One or two rustic summer-houses and a few stumps, some 
low, some tall, covered with cypress, thunbergias, yellow 
jessamines, coral honey suckles or Virginia creepers, would 
complete as beautiful, home-like a spot as one could find 
any where. 



168 HOME LIFE m FLORIDA. 

We would add, too, in one corner, a Scuppernong grape 
canopy, which would give a gloriously dense shade under 
which to swing one's hammock on a summer's day. 

All these things are easily obtainable and cost very little 
money; but they are worth hundreds of dollars to the 
health and buoyancy of the home life. Natural beauties, 
like songs, go deep. 

There are plenty of fruits that may be set in the house- 
lot in addition to those we have mentioned. 

Peach, loquat, Japanese persimmon, fig, and pear trees, 
guavas, limes, and bananas, these are the fruits to scat- 
ter around the house. These and flowers and shade trees 
and grass, surely they are quite enough without the larger 
growing trees, whose proper place is in the grove where 
they may spread and stretch their great and thorny arms 
without knocking down the house or breaking the windows. 

Grape-vines, trained on canopy arbors, afford a pleasant 
shade, and it is ornamental as well as useful to run an ar- 
bor on each side of the w^alk leading from the house to the 
chicken-yard — an arbor with a top — and train grape and 
other vines over it. 

The chicken-yard should not be too far from the house, 
and, unless it opens on a woodland where the fowls can 
range, it should be of ample dimensions, for they will not 
keep healthy unless they have plenty of room to range. 
The yard should be inclosed by a picket fence, high, if the 
common Florida chickens are to be kept in it ; for they 
are veritable " gad-abouts," and are as quick to skim over 
a five-foot fence as to pick up a grain of corn. 

Select the site for the chicken-yard with a view to con- 
vert it into a vegetable or fruit garden after the chickens 
have fertilized it for two or three years. It will be the 
richest part of your land. 

Let the chicken-house be built of slats, placed about 



HOME SURROUNDINGS. l69 

one inch apart ; this will allow necessary ventilation and 
yet be tight enough to prevent the inroads of marauding 
skunks and 'possums, both of which are sufficiently bold 
and numerous to render precaution desirable. Balked of 
their prey by other means, they will even condescend to 
"grub" for it, and if bottom boards are not sunk a few 
inches in the ground, will dig below the slats and effect an 
entrance. But with the precautions named and a tight 
roof, not an open one as some of the old natives will con- 
tend for, you may snap your fingers at the four footed ene- 
mies of your feathered property ; and, if there be any near 
neighbors of the "colored persuasion," whose love for 
chickens is proverbial, a padlock will put an effectual stop 
to their nocturnal depredations. 

Fowls of all kinds, and almost all breeds, do well in 
Florida, and there is very little sickness among them. 
More on this subject anon. 

Hawks make sad havoc sometimes among young broods 
that are allowed to have free range ; but if kept in a small 
yard made for that purpose and Avith strings running across 
it here and there, high enough not to interfere with any 
one walking there, no haw^k will make way with the young 
chicks. It is a singular fact that a hawk will not fly down 
below a string. In our own experience we lost dozens of 
our downy little pets until, learning of this device, we 
adopted it, and thenceforth not a single hawk swooped 
down into the chicken-yard. The chicks were kept there, 
protected by the strings, until about three months old, 
when they were turned out upon the world big enough and 
strong enough to take care of themselves. 

And now for the present we are done rambling out of 
doors, and shall proceed to look around inside and discuss 
the question so perplexing to settlers, "Of what to bring, 
and what not to bring " for household and for personal use. 



170 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

CHAPTER XI. 

* ' WHAT SHALL I NEED ? " 

This is a question that has doubtless perplexed every 
householder and prospective settler, when breaking up the 
old home and getting ready for the new : 

" What shall I need there, what shall I take, what leave 
behind?" 

It is a very curious thing to those who know Florida as 
it is, to learn how very wild and erroneous are the ideas 
floatino^ about over the rest of the United States concern- 
ing their southernmost sister. Only a few days since, for 
instance, we read an editorial in a Northern paper, one too 
that should have known better, in which it was stated that 
all Florida houses outside of the cities were built on the 
edges of swamps, that there was not enough dry land in 
the State to permit them to be built any where else ; that 
snakes were every where under foot, and when the doors 
were opened in the morning the snakes would crawl into 
the houses. ''The fools are not all dead yet ; " but, for all 
that, we of Florida can well afford to laugh at these impo- 
tent attempts to injure a noble State that is well able to 
speak for herself by her works. 

The tide of immigration that set in Floridaward ten 
years ago, and has constantly increased ever since, until 
to-day it is flowing wide and deep from every State in the 
Union, from England, Scotland, Sweden, is quite strong 
enough of itself to disprove all falsehoods and jealous mis- 
representations. 

Not less wide of the truth are some of the ideas taken 
up by intending settlers as to Avhat articles of household 
furniture and clothing they will find use for after reaching 



''what shall I NEED?" 171 

their new home. The idea of perpetual summer all the 
year round is one of these, and consequently all warm 
clothing is left behind, "packed up," or else reluctantly 
given away ; and more often than not, when the mistake 
is made, the settler does not find it out until the very mo- 
ment when the article left in the North is needed, and then 
he and his family suffer from cold. 

' ' Suffer from cold in Florida ! " we hear some of our 
readers exclaim. Even so; there are certain months of 
the year, as we have already noted, when it is quite possi- 
ble to suffer from cold, if not properly protected from it ; 
for it is certainly there to be felt. 

It is not at all necessary that the thermometer should 
sink to the freezing point before the human frame becomes 
susceptible to a sense of chilliness ; if that were so, then 
fires and warm clothing would be seldom needed in the 
more southern portions of this State. But, as it is, a tem- 
perature much below seventy degrees speedily chills the 
blood if one is sitting still, and there are many days of 
the Florida winter when the thermometer marks far below 
this. The winter temperature of Florida is much like that 
of the typical May and September of the Middle States — 
Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and thereabouts. 

For over twenty years, in the latitude of Jacksonville, 
the thermometer during January, February, and March, 
averaged sixty-two degrees. At St. Augustine it was rather 
lower, fifty-nine degrees, the direct sea air counteracting 
the "southing" of this quaint old town as compared with 
Jacksonville. Further south and in the interior counties 
the average for winter is about sixty -eight, sometimes 
higher, less often lower ; occasionally light films of ice may 
be seen early in the morning on water standing exposed. 
We saw it twice in Sumter County during our first four 
Florida winters, and once it lasted in the shade an eighth 



172 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

of an inch thick until noon, the thermometer marking 
thirty-one — it had been twenty-nine at day-light ; and that 
was the lowest we ever saw^ it until the winter of 1886. 
It was our first winter, and we felt as if we had met with 
a pretty cool reception in our new home, and wondered in 
rather a dazed, dumbfounded fashion if this was the way 
that Florida winters usually behaved. We felt rather dis- 
consolate over it until assured by the old settlers of nine 
and ten years' standing that they had never seen such a 
cold storm before, and they told the truth too. For three 
days the wind blew and the rain fell, and the thermometer 
fell too, steadily going lower and lower until it reached 
the point we have named. 

Florida houses, as a rule, are not built for cold weather ; 
there is so little of it that many think it is not w^orth while 
to go to the expense of a tight building; still, on all ordi- 
nary occasions, there is no trouble in keeping warm and 
comfortable. 

But this occasion we have referred to was not an ordin- 
ary one at all ; such a storm, we are happy to say, was 
almost unprecedented. There was a small stove in the 
hall, quite enough to take the chill off the adjoining rooms 
during the usual *'cool snaps," but now it proved totally 
inadequate ; a high, damp, rain-laden wind, sifting in 
every where, which practically dropped the temperature 
many degrees lower than the thermometer marked, and 
could not be endured by mortal frames without suffering. 
The dining-table was "toted" bodily into the kitchen, 
fortunately a large one ; but the floor thereof, like those 
of most Florida houses, built as they are of unseasoned 
lumber, was decidedly open. Four pairs of feet, numbed 
and cold, led their desperately astonished owners to the 
attic, where a legion of comfortables, quilts, and blankets 
were hauled out from the resting-places where they had 



"what shall I NEED?" 173 

thought to remain in "inglorious ease," and were made to 
do duty as carpets in the kitchen, all of the bona fide car- 
pets being down in their proper places in the deserted main 
house. That made the four pairs of feet more like them- 
selves ; but the four bodies hugged up close to the big 
kitchen stove, and the pine wood was kept freely burning. 
Now this yellow pine, almost universally used by the 
" pine-landers" in Florida for cooking purposes, has a way 
sometimes of getting too much for one if due care is not 
exercised ; there are certain pieces, easily recognized, that 
are very "fat," that is, they contain a larger proportion 
than usual of turpentine, and so ignite readily and burn 
fiercely. Being more used to anthracite coal than to pine 
wood, we did not realize this fact, neither did we notice 
that our supply of wood was of this fat description; so 
we piled it in the stove, and by-and-by the heat drove us 
further oft'; then, looking up, we saw the stove-pipe as- 
suming a glowing hue close to the ceiling where it entered 
the brick flue ; next we saw something more, to our horror, 
smoke and flames beginning to curl up from the ceiling 
around the pipe. Once a yellow-pine house takes fire 
there is no saving it, there are no hose carriages or fire 
engines to be summoned, and the wood burns fiercely 
and irresistibly. The sight of those creeping flames scared 
the chill blood away : one ran for a ladder to reach the 
trap that had been made in the ceiling to meet just such 
occasions as this, another scrambled like a cat up the 
partition, on a clothes-horse, plunged through the open 
trap, and dashed a pail of water around the blazing pipe- 
hole. Those below got a fine steam bath, and the one 
above came down looking like a chimney-sweep all over 
soot and cobwebs ; but no one regarded appearances just 
then, the threatening calamity v/as averted, the fire was 
put out, and the immigrants were saved from being made 



174 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

homeless indeed. After that the flue was lined with a strip 
of sheet iron, through which the pipe was made to pass, 
and with reasonable care safety in the future was assured ; 
and this is just what we earnestly urge every settler to do 
before he even kindles a fire in his house. It is an em- 
phatic illustration of the old proverb, that ' ' an ounce of 
prevention is worth a pound of cure." 

We have already referred to the value of a copious water- 
supply from a windmill and house-tank in just such cases 
as this. 

But not every one will or can have a windmill ; and it 
is well to provide such other ' ' friends in need " as may be 
possible. There are hand-grenades designed for instant 
use, by means of which even a child can extinguish an in- 
cipient fire, simply by throwing one into its midst, and this 
result is accomplished "without injury to flesh or fabric." 
These are made by the Hayward Hand Grenade Fire Ex- 
tinguisher Company, of 407 Broadway, New York. 

The "Babcock Fire Extinguisher" is another faithful 
servant in such emergencies ; and even, as we write, the 
report comes in from a Florida town, half laid in ashes, 
which are yet smoldering : ' ' Some have sneered at the lit- 
tle ' Babcock,' but they will sneer no more. But for its 
efficient work, our hotel must have gone with the rest; 
nothing but this saved it." It is well to know, too, that 
a few bits of zinc thrown in the stove will extinguish at 
once any soot or fire in the chimney by dissolving the soot, 
a curious chemical result. This we know of our own ex- 
perience. Sulphur is said to have the same effect. 

In saying that Florida houses are not built for cold 
weather, we do not mean to assert that there are no houses 
in the State that are as weather-proof as a good class of 
Northern dwellings. There are some such with tight win- 
dows, tongued and grooved floor-boards, and plastered 



''what shall I NEED?" 175 

walls, just as cosy and comfortable in cold weather as any 
residence in the North ; but these are the exceptions and 
not the rule. They are only found where the owner has a 
surplus of money, and usually it is the old settler become 
well-to-do from the profits of his grove who is the fortu- 
nate man ; although of course among the incoming settlers 
are a few, here and there, who come for the climate and 
not to carve a fortune, who are able to build such a house 
as they choose, with every improvement and convenience. 

Some prefer open fire-places, and certainly there is some- 
thing cheerful about a great, roaring blaze, with the bright 
flames leaping and dancing up the broad chimney. But 
then in Florida such a big fire is very rarely needed, or 
even comfortable, and all the rest of the year one is con- 
fronted by either the blackened ''hole in the wall" or by 
the screen that conceals it. To many it is an item to be 
considered that these great chimneys cost far more than the 
simple flues needed for stoves, the difference between fifty 
and five dollars being considerable. To our mind the small 
and ornamental stoves that are now in the market, costing 
from eight to ten dollars, with doors that slide back from 
the front, leaving a pretty little grate exposed to view, 
where the oak wood glows and sparkles, is far preferable 
to the old style of open fire-place ; the heat can be regula- 
ted as desired, and when not needed, which is the case at 
least for eight months of the year, it can be removed from 
sight ; it has all the cosy effect of the open fire-place with 
none of its disadvantages. 

And now, before we turn from this subject of Florida 
winters, we will give our readers an insight into those few 
days of 1886, the counterpart of which neither they nor 
any present adult inhabitant of Florida is ever likely to 
see again ; at least the chances are fifty to one that they 
will escape such a cool visit from Jack Frost. 



176 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

The terrible "cold wave" that swept over the whole 
country in January, 1886, penetrating even so far as the 
Cuban shores, was a phenomenal one, and as such should 
be recorded as a period of unusual interest. 

On the 7th and 8th of the month the Signal Service 
office at Jacksonville telegraphed all over the State that a 
very cold wind was approaching. 

All day long, on Friday the 8th, there was a very heavy 
wind, and all through the night it blew and tore around 
our dwelling, beating the branches of the lime trees against 
the walls, ripping up the banana leaves into ribbons, and 
thrashing the roof with the branches of trailing vines. 

A member of our family remarked that she ' ' thought 
something was up," and we mildly suggested, as a big tin 
pan descended from its nail and rumbled over the piazza, 
bewailing its fate, that we ** thought something was down." 

The wind kept on its wild career during Saturday and 
Saturday night ; but it was not until late in the afternoon 
that the first warning breath from Jack Frost's capacious 
lungs reached us and we began to realize that there would 
be full need for the huge wood-piles that hard work had 
placed en cordon around the bearing grove. 

Before long, hoAvever, it became more than doubtful 
whether even the hottest fires could avail to save the fruit 
hanging upon the trees, the high wind carrying the warmed 
air away too rapidly to effect much, if any, change in the 
temperature of the air in the grove. 

By seven o'clock in the evening the thermometer marked 
35°, a thing not known here before, and it kept rapidly 
on in its downward course until, at seven o'clock Sunday 
morning, it stood at 23° ! A hundred miles south of us, 
at the same time, it marked 19°. 

That Sunday was any thing but a '' day of rest" on our 
premises. All day long men and horses were at work feed- 



**WHAT SHALL I NEED?" 177 

ing the fires and hauling more wood for the second night's 
campaign. 

Over at the post-office, a group of blue-lipped, blue- 
skinned, blue-all-over neighbors were comparing notes — 
they were all on one key — F(roze) sharp ; as to oranges, 
"Trees not hurt," so far. 

We pulled an orange from one of our scattering trees, 
outside the fire protection, and it was a curiosity. A trans- 
verse cut showed particles of ice to its very center. 

It was a joke we had never expected to see played on us 
in Florida (our joyous, genial Florida !) to try to pour water 
from our pitcher in the morning, tAvo hours after the fire 
had been kindled in the stove, and find it literally '* no go" 
because a thick covering of ice shut it in. But we don't 
blame Florida, it was all Jack Frost's fault. She did not 
like him any more than we did — pulled down a brown veil 
all over her face and went into a brown study ; she was 
very absent-minded, particularly with regard to Jack, 
feeling she could cherish his memory more warmly if he 
were to absent himself. How can he expect to make warm 
friends when he treats them so frigidly ? 

When we stepped out of doors Sunday morning the first 
thing we saw called forth an exclamation — Jack Frost's 
card, in the shape of a long, thick icicle depending from 
the ice-coated stone filter that stands on our porch, and 
reaching from its point down into the bucket below, where 
it rested on a sea of ice, "more or less." In the provision 
closet, on the piazza, the butter was so solid that it had to 
be chopped ; the beefsteaks were stiff* as boards, and the 
potatoes, cooked the day before, were so solid that they 
actually bent the knife that foolishly essayed to cut them, 
and had to be put in the oven to thaw out before a second 
attack was made on them. 

Did n't we wish we had a servant to take the brunt of 

12 



178 HOME LIFE m FLORIDA. 

getting breakfast that astonishing morning ? No, we did n't. 
We had cue once upon a time, and Avhen the cold morn- 
ings came — ^just frosty and no more — our cook might al- 
ways be found, at the time when breakfast should have 
been ready', with her feet in the oven, her hands spread 
over the stove-top, and her head sunk into her shoulders, 
patiently waiting for us to come and get her " some wittels." 
No, we prefer having one less to wait on and more room 
for our own feet, w^hich were cold enough to feel as if our 
teeth had somehow got into our shoes and were all aching 
together. 

Hauling wood, feeding fires, shivering over the stoves, 
warm one side and freezing the other ; so the day passed 
and another night came, and no one was sorry for the lat- 
ter, except those unlucky knights whose duty kept them 
outdoors to battle with fire-brands against Jack Frost's 
assaults on our fruit. The rest of us were glad to creep 
between blankets, with a mountain of covers on top, and a 
hot water can inside. What a tale to tell of balmy Florida ! 

Monday, at seven in the morning, the thermometer 
marked 25°. The day was cloudy, and the wind died 
partially away. It was a noticeable fact, that whereas, 
ordinarily, a north wind alone brings us frosty weather, 
this unprecedented sna]) (even that of 1835 did not last so 
long) came from the west and southwest. 

What a forlorn looking set of chickens were ours ! They 
were astonished, depressed, especially their tails, wdiich 
touched the ground as they sat around in groups with their 
heads sunk into their shoulders. Of course their water- 
troughs were frozen over, and it was a comical sight to see 
these semi-tropical fowls striking their beaks again and 
again at the apparent water and then looking around in 
bewilderment at the result. It kept us busy pouring warm 
water into the troughs to give them an occasional drink. 



"what shall I NEED?" 179 

Tuesday, at seven in the morning, the mark was 21°, 
the lowest of all ; but toward nightfall the wind veered 
from the inexorable west to the north and the northeast, 
and there was a perceptible moderation of the sharpness 
in the air. The sun sank with the th-ermometer at 36° — 
higher than it had been since Saturday afternoon — and it 
was evident that the worst Avas over ; indeed, the friendly 
Signal Office again notified us, this time, that Jack was 
going home. 

It was full time, for the damage he did in those four days 
would with many take more than four years to repair. 
Not only frozen fruit, but in numerous places young trees 
were gone. In a few instances even large, bearing trees 
were killed to the ground. The extreme southern sections 
escaped but little better than the more northern portions, 
and the famous ''frost line," that every body has been try- 
ing to locate these many years proved itself to be a grand 
fraud and non-existent. 

It is a fact also to be noted that every where in the Great 
Lake regions, or wherever there was Avater protection, the 
damage done was less, because the temperature was per- 
ceptibly raised by the latent heat stored up in the great 
sheets of water over which the cold wave passed. 

There were two or three decided flurries of snow during 
Tuesday ; it was cloudy and moderating, and as some of us 
remarked, " If we were North, we should say, it was go- 
ing to snow ;" but we were just as astonished for all that. 
Snow in Florida was one thing we had never expected to 
see ; nor ice that lay in the sun for three days without 
thawing, ice several inches thick, and not artificial ice 
either ; nor ice that remained in our rooms all day long in 
spite of good, crackling fires ; nor water, spilled within four 
feet of the stove, that froze as it touched the floor. 

We are not likely to see another such visit from Jack 



180 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Frost during our life-time, and we are perfectly sure no one 
wants to. 

AVe have now said enough to show that it would not be 
wise to leave all warm clothing behind when bound for a 
Florida home ; bring it all, on the contrary, no matter how 
old or shabby or condemned in the Northern home. That 
is one of Florida's good points, the ability to wear out one's 
clothes, even after the new shine is rubbed off; the fact is, 
we often think how we should pity the '' old clothes man," 
if he should unhappily wander down to these regions ; he 
would find no stock in trade, for every body wears the old 
clothes as long as they will hold together, keeping the best 
for Sunday-go-to-meeting occasions. He is wise who dresses 
according to his occupation, and rough work around farms 
is more suitably done in old clothes. For a year or more 
before we migrated from the North it was a standing joke, 
when articles of dress became too shabby to wear for our 
city home, yet i\'ere too good to give up entirely, to thrust 
them away into a trunk, with the laughing remark, "This 
will do in Florida." We hardly expected to see the Land 
of Flowers then, but we did, and every one of those cast- 
away articles came into use, saving something better. Go 
thou and do likewise, O future Floridian ! It is a wise 
plan to follow, for it costs nothing and saves much. Old 
coats and pants, old dresses and sacks, old waterproofs, old 
shoes, good, but too shabby to wear in thickly settled com- 
munities ; all these are treasure troves in the wild free life 
of Florida's new settlements, and do just as well and bet-, 
ter to knock around in than newer and handsomer cloth- 
ing, to whose welfare thought must be given. The heavier 
winter flannels that are worn in our Northern homes are 
worn by prudent people in Florida also during the months 
of November, December, January, and February. When 
the temperature rises, the change in dress is made from the 



*'WHAT SHALL I NEED?" 181 

outside; a chilly, bracing day requires woolen clothing 
in addition to the warm under-clothing ; on milder days, 
and they predominate, wash-dresses for the women and 
alpaca coats for the men are in order ; then, if there comes 
a sudden change, it is very easy to replace the heavy outer 
clothing. The wearing of flannel next to the skin is an 
important factor for the preservation of health, not alone 
in Florida, however; it guards the body against sudden 
changes of temperature as no other clothing can do, because 
it absorbs moisture from the skin, and so rapidly evaporates 
it that, when a cool breeze is blowing, even though one's 
outer clothing may be dripping with perspiration, it never 
clings damp and wet to the body, chilling it ' ' to the bone," 
as the saying is. Gauze flannel in summer and heavy flan- 
nel in winter, these we would advise for Florida as much 
as for a more variable clime. 

For summer weather one wears just the same as in the 
North, except that in the evenings a light jacket or other 
wrap of some kind is desirable, as also very often during 
the day if sitting out on the porch. 

And now we are going to say something that will aston- 
ish most of our readers, yet we mean it, and it is true. It 
is cooler in the summer in Florida than it is in the North- 
ern States, or in any other of the Southern ; yes, though 
it is the most southerly of all. 

The Swiss dresses, that ladies frequently find occasion to 
wear during the Northern summers, are rarely worn on the 
peninsula of Florida, because of the cool breezes that are 
constantly sweeping over it from gulf to ocean and from 
ocean to gulf. It is a breeze that is always at odds with 
the thermometer — always ''giving it the lie" in the most 
reckless manner ; for instance, one summer day our 7nater 
famiUas settled down on the porch to sew, but in a few 
minutes rose up and departed in-doors, with the remark 



182 HOME LIFE m FLORIDA. 

that it "was too cool to be comfortable." It was mid-day 
in the middle of July, and, according to the Northern ideas 
and Northern practice at that hour, we should have been 
melting with fervid heat. We looked at the thermometer, 
and it marked 88° ! The breeze and the thermometer were 
quarreling as usual, you see, and the breeze had the best 
of it ; it really was too cool to sit out of doors, in the shade ; 
and this was not a rare occasion either. Of course the sun 
is hot, so it is North, with no breeze three fourths of the 
time to temper its rays ; and who does not dread the swel- 
tering, breathless days and nights of intense heat that 
sandwich the cooler times all summer long? There is 
never a night in Florida when one can not sleep in comfort 
or is compelled to toss or wander about seeking a cool sjjot ; 
more often than not a blanket is needed before morning. 

And now as to furniture. A great many Floridians 
live on bare floors all the year round ; but that is not the 
way the better classes like to live, if they can help them- 
selves. 

We have heard of settlers who, before leaving their old 
homes, sold or gave away all of their household carpets. 
" What on earth should we do with carpets in Florida!" 
they exclaim. Do ! why tread them under foot to be sure. 
A Florida house has floors, surely ; and they are the better 
for being covered, not only for their attractiveness, but for 
their owners' comfort. There is something utterly cheerless 
about bare floors that takes away all the home feeling from 
a room, no matter how well it may be furnished otherwise ; 
the intrusive sound of every footstep, the scraping and 
thumping whenever a piece of furniture is moved, carries 
with it a sense of discomfort to the ear, as the bare boards 
do to the eye. As to the statement made by some, that 
*' carpets bring fleas," it is simply humbug. 

Matting is just the thing for summer use, and will do 



*'WHAT SHALL I NEED?" 183 

very well for the cooler months also, especially if rugs or 
strips of carpeting are laid by bed, bureau or washstand ; 
these give comfort to the feet and relieve the otherwise 
chilly aspect of matting, especially if it be white. These 
rugs and strips too will relieve the dreariness of a bare 
floor, if such there must be. But for those who have car- 
pets we would say, by all means bring them along and lay 
them on the floors, if not for all the year, at least for the 
winter months ; you will be glad enough to feel them un- 
der your feet Avhen the cool winds are whistling outside and 
the cozy fire is burning merrily inside. 

Good lamps are important items in the comfort of a 
household ; with a bright, clear, far-reaching light, the fam- 
ily circle of an evening is apt to be correspondingly socia- 
ble and cheerful ; with a poor dim light, those nearest the 
lamp are the only ones satisfied, and the "outsiders" are 
more likely than not to go grumblingly to bed. 

We found this so in our own experience : coming from 
a city of abundant gas-lights, such lamps as we were able 
to procure were totally unsatisfying. 

But we have solved this ' ' light question " now entirely 
and fully, and that our readers may enjoy a clear, steady, 
brilliant light, without smoke or smell, or as much trouble 
to take care of as an ordinary lamp, we would advise them 
to do as we did — send to A. J. Weidener, 36 South Second 
Street, Philadelphia, Penn., for a Catalogue of the Cham- 
pion Lamps, of the patent for which he is sole owner. The 
light is circular, has a patent extinguisher, and is absolutely 
safe. The lamps cost, according to the ornamentation and 
style, from three dollars upward. 

Another thing that is more than ''handy to have in the 
house " is one of the small soldering caskets that come on 
purpose for family use. 

Every Florida household should be able to mend its own 



184 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

tinware, for not only is the tin-man frequently a thing of 
the future in new towns, but it is troublesome to send to 
him, even if within a few miles, to mend every little hole 
that you could do yourself. 

We know all about it, and now we have read a declara- 
tion of independence, which was only delayed until we 
found out where to send for our soldering implements, these 
and rosin, with muriatic acid for greasy patients, are all 
one needs. 

Housekeeping stores usually have the soldering caskets ; 
but for those who do not know where to send, we will state 
that we got ours by mail, at a cost of sixty cents, from A. 
H. Pomeroy, 216-220 Asylum Street, Hartford, Conn. 

In one year this little casket has saved at least ten times 
its cost, beside the convenience of being able to mend a 
leak without any delay or expense. 

As to furniture : advice on this subject is more difficult 
to give, as a great deal depends on the point to which the 
settler is bound, especially if he has to buy new furni- 
ture. If it be near Jacksonville, Palatka, Leesburg, Sand- 
ford, Gainesville, Ocala, Orlando, or any of the larger 
towns, then it would be well to bring from the North only 
such few heir-loom articles of furniture as one ia not will- 
ing to part with — carpets, matting, bedding, especially hair 
mattresses and feather pillows, j)ictures, brackets, books, 
and the little odds and ends that do not take up much 
room, yet go very far toward making a home cheerful and 
restful. It is all a question of expense, and where the 
requisite furniture can be bought on the sj)ot it is usu- 
ally found that the prices asked for them are little if any 
higher than the same things would cost if purchased North 
and brought here by the settler ; the freight charges will 
make up the difference. At Jacksonville and Fernandina, 
household furniture, especially, is almost if not quite as 



"what shall I NEED?" 185 

cheap as in New York, the reason being that the merchants 
have very light freights to pay on these and other bulky 
articles, because they are usually brought by the lumber 
schooners as return freight. They carry freight to Florida 
cheaply, as they would otherwise have to come in ballast. 

Householders near the seaports, Boston, New York, 
Philadelphia, Baltimore, who already possess the needful 
furniture and can make arrangements to ship it by schooner 
to Fernandina or Jacksonville, will save a great deal by 
doing so, and land their household goods on their new home 
site cheaper than they could purchase them. When it is 
desired to ship by schooner to the nearest point, and that 
point is south of Palatka, it is sometimes possible to find a 
vessel bound to the latter place. Always, when it is pos- 
sible, the settler should ship his goods at least two weeks 
ahead of his own departure, if he wishes to find them await- 
ing him ; three weeks are not too much if sent by schooner, 
and, in the latter case, it is usual to have the goods in- 
sui*ed. 



186 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

CHAPTER XII. 

"what SHALL I EAT?" 

Well, to be honest and trne, as we always endeavor to 
be, we can only answer to this query, " Whatever you can 
get." And what that may be depends very much on cir- 
cumstances : the depth of one's purse, the depth of one's 
lakelet, the "newness" of the neighborhood, the vicinity 
of a (comparatively) large town, and the transportation 
facilities. With a well-filled purse one may easily obtain 
a well-filled basket in the older-settled portions of the State, 
and in fact in many of the very new ones also, if there 
chances to be an enterprising, wide-awake merchant at 
hand, and modern people to appreciate his modern goods ; 
for here, as elsewhere, the demand creates the supply. 

And wherever this proves not to be the case it is sure 
to be only a temporary inconvenience, and one which, 
with a better hope for the near future, can be cheerfully 
borne. Certainly no settlers of ordinary intelligence can 
hope or expect to find in a new country, only partially 
reclaimed from the wilderness, all the innumerable com- 
forts and luxuries of the countries whence they come — 
countries that have been for years upon years under the 
sway of advanced civilization. There they have at hand 
not only the productions of the soil of their own locality, 
but the accumulated necessaries and comforts and luxuries 
of all the countries of the world brought to their doors by 
steamships and railroads. 

Take only the native fruits, the great orchards growing 
all around them. Were they there, with their apples and 
pears and peaches ready to be plucked and eaten when the 
first tree was felled, the first home laid out, in that part 



"what shall I EAT?" 187 

of the country? Rather was there only a vast ''howling 
wilderness," with all the discomforts of a newly settled 
region ; and, in addition, dangers from Indians, from wild 
beasts, and for more than half the year from cold and 
wind and storms also. 

Ah ! truly, the Northern and Western pioneers of civil- 
ization had a harder time by far than the Florida settlers 
of the present day ! Deprivations there are, but no actual 
hardships, and not even severe deprivations. There are 
no Indians to fear ; very few if any wild beasts, especially 
in those sections of the State now so rapidly filling up 
with emigrants ; no terrible, freezing winters, with which 
a battle for life must be fought ; no soil shut out from cul- 
tivation for five months of the year by snow, ice, and 
mud ; no frightful storms, such as sweep the Avestern prai- 
ries and Texas plain's, no terrible floods, destroying life 
and property in wholesale measure. 

Taking all things into consideration, we can scarcely 
conceive of any settler, who is possessed of common sense 
(a most uncommon commodity, by the way) sufiacient 
not to expect to see "figs grow on thistles and grapes on 
thorns," who yet will grumble at the few discomforts that 
may meet him in his new Florida home in the way of 
table-supplies. We use the masculine pronouns advisedly, 
because all the complaints on this score that we have ever 
read came from that lower half of humanity of whom it 
is said, "He carries his conscience on his palate, and his 
heart in his stomach ;" an old Spanish proverb, and a very 
true one too. 

But we do not mean to insinuate that " good things" for 
the table are not to be procured in Florida ; no one need 
lack for plenty, if only he has energy, perseverance, and 
patience, a gun, a fish-hook, and a noose. We will explain 
the latter assertion presently, only premising that said 



188 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

noose is not intended for hanging purposes, humanly 
speaking. 

When the writer settled near Leesburg there were only 
two stores in the then little town where groceries, provis- 
ions, and a ''general assortment" of goods were kept; and 
the stock in these, though surprisingly large in quantity, 
was of the roughest in quality and of the most limited in 
variety. 

It was a long while before we could get used to this state 
of things, coming, as we did, from tlie second city in the 
Union, with all the varied luxuries of the world as well 
as its mere comforts lying in profusion around us. 

We would make up a list of articles needed for the 
household, and as a matter of fact not one in ten of 
those things that we had always considered as necessaries 
could be obtained, and some of them had "never been 
heard of." 

" Have you any granulated sugar?" we would ask. 

"No, nothing but Florida brown." 

Now, we knew that Florida brown sugar, grown and 
manufactured on the spot, as it were, was in all probability 
a purer article than the perhaps adulterated white sugar 
we asked for; but, while it might answer for some pur- 
poses, it would not for all ; still it " had to do," as we found 
that many other things "had to do" that once we would 
have looked down upon with scorn. We grew very meek 
and humble after a while, and came quickly to the conclu- 
sion that as " something was better than nothing," we would 
accept the former with gratitude. To continue our cate- 
chism of the storekeeper : 

"Any farina?" 

"No call for it, so don't keep it." 

"Any corn starch, sago, tapioca?" 

" No ; the people have never even heard of them." 



"what shall I EAT?" 189 

" Any cheese ? any pickles ? " 

"Not enough sale for them, to pay to keep them." 

"Then, in the name of all that is mysterious, what do 
you keep ? " 

"Coffee, Florida sugar, molasses, meat — " 

" Ah ! " How we brightened up. Meat ! yes, we wanted 
meat ; only too glad to get it. 

Proudly the salesman brought out the meat ; there was 
one thing at least they did have. He brought it forth 
and laid it on the counter — and our heart went down, down 
to China Meat ! why it was pork — bacon ; an immense 
thick slab of fat and lean, all crusted over with crystals 
of salt ! and he looked so proud, and we felt so disgusted ! 
He looked at us, and we looked at the meat. 

" Why, that is bacon ! " we gasped. 

" Yes, miss ; it's very fine too, first-class meat ; how many 
pounds ? " he said complacently. 

" But we wanted meat ! " 

The salesman gazed at us meditatively ; then a gleam of 
compassion stole over his features, a smile of pity for our 
ignorance or — insanity. 

' ' Bacon is meat, and meat is bacon." 

" Oh !" We felt subdued, reproved, sat upon, and meekly 
explained that, with us of the North, meat meant beef, 
mutton, any fresh meat from the butcher. 

"Oh," he said, "you mean fresh! No, we don't keep 
fresh at all, except sometimes some one brings in venison 
to trade. Did n't know you meant fresh." 

We bowed our head, and crept out of that store, wiser 
and meeker than we had entered it ; to think we had been 
guilty of such benighted ignorance as to call "fresh," 
meat, and meat, bacon ! 

Then we picked up our courage, and wandered up to the 
counter once more, we had forgotten a part of our quest. 



190 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

'' Have you got any potatoes?" 

The salesman's face expanded into a delighted smile. 
''Yes, he had got some potatoes, very fine ones," and he 
brought them out to show. AVe gazed at them, at him, at 
the door ; this thing was becoming monotonous. We had 
asked for potatoes, distinctly; we had not j^refixed ''sweet" 
to our query, yet he had brought us sweet potatoes. 

"Not sweet potatoes, white potatoes!" we whispered 
faintly. 

" You said potatoes, and these are potatoes. How could 
I know you meant Irish potatoes ? " said he, with mild, re- 
proachful indignation. 

And then we learned another lesson, that while in the 
North we speak of Irish potatoes as simply "potatoes," 
and of sweet potatoes by their full title, the reverse is the 
case in the South ; white potatoes are Irish potatoes, sweet 
potatoes are distinctively "potatoes." 

Another time we wanted a one or two-gallon kerosene 
oil-can, and a one-gallon stone jug, but could only find a 
half-gallon kerosene can and a two-gallon jug. Again, a 
stove was wanted, and when found, there was no pipe 
nearer than two hundred and fifty miles. There was no 
sewing-silk, except black ; no zephyrs, only inferior cali- 
coes of antiquated patterns, and very little of other kinds 
of dry goods. There was no meat market, no ' ' fresh " 
market, we should say, only we confess we are not properly 
educated even yet. Once in a while a cart was brought to 
one's house, in which reposed a whole or half a " beef," just 
killed by a neighbor, and shaded from the sun by palmetto 
leaves or pine boughs. And then the family, drawn forth 
en masse by so rare and exciting an arrival, would collect 
around the cart and watch the amateur butcher saw and 
cut, and slash and hack, in a manner painful to behold, to 
eyes accustomed to the neat, trim, carefully cut steaks and 



"what shall I EAT?" 191 

roasts of the Northern raarkets. The so-called steaks were 
nondescripts, and the roasting pieces ' ' strangely and won- 
derfully made." They were a regular curiosity to the cook, 
and an absorbing study in anatomy to the carver, but what 
did we care ? We had learned that beef was beef, no mat- 
ter how it was cut, and were thankful to get any at all ; 
we no longer turned up our noses at ''fresh" meat unless, 
indeed, it was stale ; rather paradoxical, that statement, is 
it not ? but easily understood by those who dwell where 
ice is unknown, either in the rivers or refrigerators. We 
had occasion to turn up our noses a number of times during 
our first summer. We bought meat, and at the same time 
"bought experience," and the latter cost the most; the 
beef was six cents per pound, venison eight, but the expe- 
rience was accumulative until we had purchased a goodly 
stock, and then it began to pay as a saving investment. 

Used to ice and a refrigerator, where provisions might 
be stored all through the hot summer weather, it was a 
puzzle to us to know how to preserve any thing, especially 
meats, without their aid. We had a " slat closet," that is, 
a closet built much like a chicken- coop, except that the 
slats ran horizontally instead of i3erpendicularly. It was 
placed against the back wall of the house on the piazza 
that connected the main house with the kitchen buildings. 
Where woven wire can be jDrocured, it makes an excellent 
substitute for the slats, and is in fact better in every re- 
spect ; for, unless one is willing to permit flies, bees, and 
other insects to feed at will on the daily provisions, the 
slats must have an insect-proof lining ; mosquito netting 
or cheese-cloth, tacked on the inside of the closet, is the 
best in the absence of the wire net. This keeps insects at 
a respectful distance, and admits the air freely ; for this 
latter is the whole aim and intent of the "open closet;" 
fresh air is the Florida refrigerator, and it is really won- 



192 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

derfiil how long fresh meats and other perishable provisions 
can be preserved in good order, simply by allowing a free 
circulation of air over and around them. 

We bought our experience of this fact at the expense of 
our pocket and olfactories ; the slatted closet did not keep 
insects away, Ave did not approve of their walking over 
our eatables, and the mosquito-net ''dodge" had not yet 
dawned upon our benighted intellect. Beef, for instance, 
we put away after cooking in a covered dish, soups, gravies, 
potatoes also — and the result? The chickens, those univer- 
sal household scavengers, fared royally. Their noses were 
not so well developed as ours, so they "did not mind;'* 
but we cried aloud in despair, and those important prom- 
ontories of the human facial landscape, the noses aforesaid, 
were in sore danger of taking a permanent upward turn. 

It has been well said that the greatest discoveries have 
been made by accident. One day we forgot to cover up 
our beef, and it was one of the warmest days and nights 
of the summer, yet, to our astonishment, the beef was per- 
fectly sweet the following day. That set us to thinking, 
and we left the covers off of our provisions next time of 
malice prepense, and thereafter the chickens fared worse 
and we fared better. 

Moral : Put your eatables where the air can play over 
them, for Florida air is so pure and so dry that it acts as 
a preservative. 

Another method of preserving beef or other fresh meat 
from one day to another, which was unknown to us in 
those early days, is to sprinkle a little powdered borax 
over it; it will then keep perfectly sweet, and a simple 
washing before cooking will remove all unpleasant taste. 

Now that we have given some idea of how things used 
to be in the "old times" of a fcAv years ago, let us see how 
they are now ; and in what we may say as to improvements 



''what shall I EAT?" 193 

let us be understood as including every new-settled portion 
of the State, either in the present or in the near future ; 
for a Florida town, once properly started, does not retro- 
grade, it keeps on improving just as our own particular 
little town has done ; so that whenever a new-comer finds 
some accustomed comfort missing he may take refuge in 
the knowledge that it will soon turn up. 

Ten years ago there was only one weekly boat that 
came steaming up the Ochlawaha from Jacksonville, and 
carried all the groceries and varied stock for the stores 
located all along the two hundred and fifty miles of its 
route ; so you will readily see that no one town could hope 
to monopolize any great portion of the freight of a small 
boat on its weekly trip. That was one reason Leesburg 
was not better supplied at that time ; in fact, the major 
part of its stock in trade was hauled in wagons for thirty- 
five miles over the sandy roads, Ocala being the main 
depot of supply. Another reason we have given, why 
should the stores keep what the people did not "call for?" 
The large majority were of a class that had been used to 
"roughing it;" they had come either from the northern 
part of the State or else from other thinly settled portions 
of the South; a few families of culture and education 
were scattered here and there, the pioneers of the tide that 
flowed in swiftly behind them, but they were too few in 
number to make any change in the stores. 

One year later, however, "coming events cast their 
shadows before," and instead of finding one in ten of the 
articles desired, we mounted to four in ten. It became 
possible to buy a spool of silk, to match skirt braid ; to 
find currants, raisins, tapioca, Graham flour, buckwheat, 
cheese, and like classes of goods, that the town had never 
seen before. The weekly boat had become a tri-weekly 
in the orange and cotton season, and a semi- weekly all the 

13 



194 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

year round. There were three mails a week, coming over- 
land for sixty miles, instead of one ; there was a telegraph 
line erected next, and then the St. John's and Lake Eustis 
Railroad opened a line of communication with Jacksonville 
via the St. John's River that shortened the two-and-a-half 
day's trip on the Ochlawaha boats to one day, or a little 
over. Then came a daily mail, and four or five boats a 
week in addition to the daily service by way of the St. 
John's and Lake Eustis Railroad. All these onward steps 
were not only the cause, but the direct result of the new 
class of settlers who were coming in — and are still, we may 
add — faster and faster. 

Now, at this present writing, the change in this young 
city of Leesburg, fed by three railroads, is simply wonder- 
fid ; and the rapid improvement here is but a type of the 
majority of the Florida towns as soon as a railroad reaches 
them. 

There is almost nothing that can not be purchased in the 
larger and older towns. Many of them are tapped by more 
than one railroad or boat line ; several have ice factories ; 
many have large handsome stores, churches, banks, acade- 
mies, every thing in fact that can minister to comfort, lux- 
ury, and refinement. All these things Leesburg now has. 

In many localities, where the transportation lines have 
preceded him, the settler will find no difiiculty in procuring 
all of the comforts and many of the luxuries of life. 

The country is still new, but the days of deprivation are 
rapidly passing away. It does not pay for the settler to 
bring a lot of perishable provisions with him if he is bound 
for the near neighborhood of a town ; the freight charges 
will ''eat up" any difterence in the price. For instance, 
a neighbor of our own brought from New York a barrel 
of flour; it proved not to be the quality desired, and a 
merchant "in town" offered to exchange it for a superior 



*' WHAT SHALL I EAT?" 195 

brand he had in stock, and a comparison of prices revealed 
the fact that the economical neighbor had paid more, in- 
cluding freight, than would have purchased a better article 
on the spot. And this is a type of many other things. 
In sugars, lard, hams, flour, there is not much difference, 
as a rule, between Florida and Northern prices, though 
a good deal depends on the greed of the merchant and 
whether he has a monopoly ; but in canned goods there is 
usually enough to pay the householder to send an order to 
the North, or, which is better, to Jacksonville, if that or- 
der be a large one, so that the saving shall counterbalance 
the freight. An order of sixty dollars, at Northern prices, 
would eftect a saving of from twenty to thirty dollars, that 
is, the same goods at the ordinary Florida stores would cost 
that much more ; at the same time canned goods are going 
out and fresh vegetables taking their place, as they should 
have done long ago. 

So much for the question of "What Shall I Eat?" as 
regards the stores ; but there are other and important 
sources of supply with which the merchants have nothing 
to do, and which make an energetic settler almost inde- 
pendent : these are the garden, the shot-gun, fish-hook, 
and noose, before referred to, not forgetting the poultry 
and "family friend," who furnishes the "cream of the 
joke," the cow. Of these more anon. 



196 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

CHAPTER XIII. 

HOME SUPPLIES. 

We have now discussed the provisional question from 
the purchaser's point of view ; but there yet remain other 
points of outlook to examine, not less important than the 
first, and to many of even more vital significance. Those 
who have means to purchase are in a measure independ- 
ent ; but the number is not small, of those who come to 
seek a home in Florida, who need to husband every dollar 
for necessary work, and to look at home as far as possible 
for food supplies. 

There are many ways by which a thrifty, energetic set- 
tler can help to fill the larder without the expenditure of 
a single dollar, save, perhaps, as "invested capital," such 
as shot-guns, traps, and fishing-tackle, which draw a high 
rate of interest in the shape of game and fish. Besides 
these resources, there are the cows, chickens, vegetable 
garden, and fruits, both wild and cultivated. 

Let us look into the game division of our subject first, 
and see what can be found for bullet, hook, and noose to 
capture for the family table, " without money and without 
price." Probably there is no country in the world where 
fish, flesh, and fowl, in the wild state, are more plentiful 
than they are in Florida all the year round. 

All the year round, we repeat, and with emphasis, for 
it is no small item with the settler who wishes to depend 
in a great measure on the fruits of his gun and rod for 
his family provisions, that there is no time of the year 
when he is cut off" from these important supplies. True, 
there are some seasons of the year when game is more 
abundant than at others ; but there is never a time when 



HOME SUPPLIES. 



197 



it is not sufficiently plentiful to make an empty-lmnded 
hunt of a few hours' duration a thing of such rarity as 
to be practically unknown. There are few localities where 
deer are not still to be found within easy reach of the set- 
tler's rifle, although in the more settled regions they are 
becoming scarcer every year ; for instance, four, yes, even 
two years ago, venison was frequently brought into our 
own growing little city for sale during the cooler months ; 
but now it is more seldom seen, and has become one of 
the luxuries. 

Yet, ever and anon, several graceful, dainty deer are 
seen trotting timidly across the clearings close to the newly 
erected dwelling-houses, and sometimes they, like more 
civilized animals, get into mischief, leaping fences and 
nipping off" the young growth of the orange trees, or eat- 
ing off" corn fodder as it stands in the fields. These pilfer- 
ings are usually carried on at night, and so the nimble 
marauders act with impunity until, their haunts being 
discovered, they meet leaden bullets flying around them. 
One unhappy deer, not long since, was so torn and mutil- 
ated in leaping a barbed wire fence as to be unable to leap 
out of the inclosure, and the poor creature, thus self-en- 
trapped, soon met its death at the hands of the owner 
of the trees it had helped to "nip in the bloom of their 
youth." 

There is a little gray squirrel that is met with in both 
hammock and piney woods, darting like a light shadow 
over the ground, or leaping with wonderful rapidity from 
branch to branch and tree to tree. He is a good deal like 
the "wicked flea," one moment he is there, the next he 
isn't, and unless one's eyes are very sharp and quick he 
will vanish entirely while the gun is waving wildly in the 
air, striving for a " sight." This pretty, nimble little fel- 
low is very good eating, and makes a first-class stew ; but, 



198 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

as we have intimated, that celebrated adage of the cook- 
book, "first catch your hare," applies to him with a great 
deal of aptitude ; a dog to ' ' tree " him in a detached tree, 
whence there is uO escape, affords ahnost the only chance 
of securing this tid-bit for one's table. 

Kabbits are plentiful, and fat — ah! too fat sometimes, 
when they owe their fine condition to sundry raids on one's 
garden patch ; if only they would make these visits in 
broad daylight, when they might be provided Avith a des- 
sert of cold lead ; but they are too cute for that. Under 
cover of the shield of night Mr. Kabbit sings thusly to 
his lady love : 

"Oh, come into the garden, Maud, 
And when the day shall break, 
The settler '11 find his 'green stuff' chawed, 
And bless us for its sake." 

The usual traps in use at the North for the capture of 
similar small game are useful here as well ; but if they 
fail, and the garden is sufieriug from their raids, pieces of 
sweet potato, of which rabbits are very fond, with strych- 
nine well rubbed into sundry slits cut in them, Avill solve 
the mooted question as to who is going to eat those vegeta- 
bles, their owner or his uninvited guests. But it always 
seems a sad waste to call in this latter aid to the rabbits' 
destruction, so much good food is lost. But then, it is 
true, on a thrifty farm nothing is wasted, and so even the 
poisoned "varmints" can be buried in the garden they 
sought to rob, and thus made to contribute to its fertility, 
a woeful example of retributive justice. 

Then there is that famous "critter," the 'possum. We 
of the North are apt to regard this nocturnal denizen of 
the woods as food fit only for the colored race of humanity ; 
but the truth is that many a worse-flavored and tougher 



HOME SUPPLIES. 199 

bit of meat finds its way to the table of the wealthy epi- 
cure than a nicely roasted 'possum. There is a prejudice 
abroad against it, and that prejudice is totally unfounded, 
and, where the Florida settler can capture and use to the 
benefit of his larder an opossum, Ave advise him not to 
throw away valuable food for no reason at all. A roasted 
opossum and a young, savory roasted pig could not be 
told one from the other, by the taste at least. We know, 
because once we overcame our own prejudice on this sub- 
ject and did taste of the despised 'possum ; we had helped 
to relegate that 'possum to the shades of the past, and we 
desired to assist at a decent burial also ; if w^e had not seen 
that our meat was cut from a 'possum, we should have said 
it was a roast pig. 

Every body knows that the opossums love chickens and 
eggs, and this is their most heinous crime ; though why w^e 
should blame a dumb beast for what we account no sin in 
ourselves is one of the inconsistencies of human nature. 
We too like chickens and eggs, and eat them whenever we 
can get them, yet in ourselves we find no sin. But then, 
perhaps it is not in the liking or the eating, but in the 
getting, and the manner thereof, that the sin lies ; and in 
this view the 'possum does certainly deserve some moral 
lectures, for there is no worse chicken and egg thief to be 
found, except it may be that popular perfumer, the skunk ; 
and for obvious reasons we prefer to have an opossum on 
the premises, if we must have either. It needs but a very 
little hole, or narrow slit, to be left in the hen-house for 
the opossum to obtain entrance to the coveted preserves, 
and then woe to the eggs in the nests under the setting 
hens, and woe to the chickens themselves. But, smart as 
the 'possum is, he gets sadly "taken in and done for" 
sometimes, as was the sad fate of the opossum we have 
referred to above. 



200 HOME IJFE IN FLOEIDA. 

We were about retiring to bed one clear, moonlight 
night, when our attention was attracted by a curious noise 
from the direction of the hen-house, some little distance 
away. It was a noise not to be explained in any ordinary 
way, and, after being satisfied as to its direction, one per- 
son with a pistol and another with a lantern sallied forth 
to find out the cause of the rumpus. Outside the hen- 
house we paused to listen ; no chickens were screaming, 
only a low murmur of alarm could be heard among them ; 
but clear and loud sounded the noise that had called us 
forth from our would-be slumbers, a decided, emphatic 
thumping and pounding against the inside wall of the hen- 
house, and what that sound meant, why it was, and what 
was causing that sharp hammer-like rapping, no one could 
imagine. Stealthily the door was opened, and then the 
light revealed what ? A ludicrous sight, and no mis- 
take ! an opossum sitting erect on its hind legs in a nest, 
so intent on endeavoring to crack a China nest-egg, held 
in its forepaws, by pounding it on the wall, as not to heed 
our entrance ! Fully a minute we stood watching its ill- 
sjDent efforts, then the light was flashed in its eyes, and it 
dropped the China egg, and rolled itself into a ball, lying 
there motionless at our feet. You have heard the phrase, 
''playing 'possum," and no one who has seen these cun- 
ning creatures "playing dead" will question the full jus- 
tice of its application. The present 'j^ossum we knew 
could only be dead through fear, and as our faith in its 
susceptibility to shocks was small, a bullet roused its dor- 
mant energies, and it started to run, when a second dose 
of lead converted its live feint into a dead faint. 

"The Avay of the transgressor is hard," and it was sig- 
nally true of this unfortunate robber ; he came to eat and 
found too hard a nut to crack, and was eaten himself as 
the sole result of his venture. 



HOME SUPPLIES. 



201 



Any man who has one or more pershnmon trees on his 
lands, or near at hand, possesses just so many ready-made 
'possum traps, for the animal is extravagantly fond of the 
wild persimmons that grow throughout Florida, so much 
so that its fondness for this fruit has become proverbial, 
and it will travel for miles, if necessary, for the happiness 
of hanging head down in a persimmon tree and using its 
forepaws as hands with which to fill its mouth with the 
coveted fruit. 

An experienced 'possum hunter will always seek the 
neighborhood of these trees during their fruiting season, 
and, nine times out of ten, one or more of the creatures 
sought will be found among the branches, their exact po- 
sition being revealed by blazing torches in the hands of 
their pursuers, when a few sure shots bring them tumbling 
to the ground. 

Sometimes the '"possum hunts" are organized by ne- 
groes, who have only their dogs as guides and their hatch- 
ets and axes as weapons. In these cases the tree that 
shelters the 'possum is surrounded by an eager torch- 
bearing group, while two of their number with SAvift 
blows from their axes lay low the tree — it falls, and with 
it the unlucky 'possum to meet the eager hatchets aimed 
at its life. 

Of all creatures, the opossum is one of the most easily 
trapped. Cunning as it is in some respects, it is exceed- 
ingly simple in others, and a rude trap that a rat or even 
a rabbit would shun is perfectly effectual for the opossum. 
Leave open a straight and broad path for its escape, and 
fix a trap in a narrow, crooked corner of exit, and it will 
choose the latter, preferring the twisted by-ways of the 
world, just as do so many of its human compatriots. 

Of birds that may be utilized for the table their name 
is legion, and any family that numbers among it a man or 



202 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

boy wlio can handle a gun effectually may count upon a 
full and constant supply at all times of the year. On the 
lakes and rivers are myriads of water-fowl, and in the 
.woods abound splendid specimens of the wild turkey, fif- 
teen to twenty pounds being no uncommon weight for 
these latter to reach — and they are "splendid eating," being 
fully equal to the much-vaunted domesticated turkey of 
the North. Of the smaller birds that are abundant in the 
piney woods as in the hammock, the partridge, or quail, 
comes first in the estimation of the epicure ; and truly this 
fat, chubby little fellow, with his merry whistle and buoy- 
ant call of " Bob White ! Bob White !" is as fine a tid-bit, 
broiled and served on toast, as one need ever wish to taste. 
But all the same, we always regret the killing of a part- 
ridge, partly because of that joyous whistle of his, and 
partly because he is so bold and saucy and fearless. You 
look out of your window in the early morning, and not 
infrequently the first thing you see is a "covey" of fat, 
brown little fellows, running about right under your hand, 
as it w^re, or sitting on the edge of your seed-boxes, or 
perhaps it is only a solitary couple who have left their nest 
close by in search of provender ; you move, and they lift 
their dainty striped heads, cock their bright eyes at you, 
and run away a few yards, then stop and look back to see 
what you are going to do about it. If satisfied there is no 
malice in your heart, or yearnings in your stomach, they 
come running back again and resume their search for 
crumbs or seeds right under your eye, hunting about with 
the most intense business-like air imaginable. 

And this is why we always feel sorry to see the fat little 
creatures lying limp and cold before us, the joyous wdiistle 
stilled forever, the brown head drooping, the busy feet 
stiff* and nerveless. But they are good to eat, no doubt 
of that, and they are eagerly sought after with gun and 



HOME SUPPLIES. 



203 



traps ; we have seen nine of the chubby fat tid-bits secured 
at one shot, and eight caught at one time in a trap baited 
with cow -peas; but usually the brown -bird collection is 
made more slowdy. 

Next in value as a food-supply comes the dove, a larger 
bird than the partridge and excellent for the table, but so 
wild and quick to take alarm that it requires a cautious 
gunner to creep near enough for a shot, and a quick and 
skillful one to secure any reliable aim. Doves are ex- 
tremely plentiful during the fall and winter months, flying 
in large flocks of from fifty to a hundred, sitting close to- 
gether on the ground, and rising at the same instant with 
a rush and whirr of wings that is startling to the unsus- 
pecting pedestrian. Rarely indeed is the dove caught in a 
trap, for it is a wary bird, and not at all inquisitive as 
to what manner of forage may be lying under a certain 
tipped-up box ; partridges will march in, a whole covey 
of them, to see what it may be, but the dove "never- 
well, hardly ever!" 

The beautiful brown-coated, yellow-breasted, and black- 
cravated meadow lark, spite of its gay plumage and sweet 
little song, is lawful and frequent prey for the sportsman's 
gun. There is not so much of him, when cooked, as there 
is of the partridge and dove, but what there is is very 
good and not to be despised. 

Then there are snipe of various kinds, rice-birds, tiny 
little things, red -winged starlings, and a host of others, 
all more or less desirable for the table. 

And then, if one wants beef and can't get it, there is 
at hand a first-rate substitute, either for a stew, or, better 
still, for soup-making : all one has to do is to go out in the 
piney woods and there, on a sloping hill-side, he Avill find 
the home of this subterranean beef-bearer— a small mound 
of sand thrown out, and slanting downward from it at a 



204 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

pretty sharp incline au excavation, flat at the bottom and 
arched on top like the typical entrance to a cave, only of 
course this is in miniature. • 

We see the entrance ; but how far down into the bowels 
of the earth that tunnel extends no one can say without 
digging. It is the home of the "gopher;" and, by this, 
we do not mean the four-legged, fussy, prairie-dog creature 
of the West that is sometimes called ■' gopher." No ; our 
Florida gopher has four legs, it is true, but of fur he has 
none, nor does he come out to his door like his namesake 
and sit up "on end" to see "the world and its brother" 
go by. Our gopher's legs are not pretty to look at ; they 
are an ugly, dirty brownish-black, and his back is round, 
hard and arched, and covered by a rather disreputable 
coat, marked off in irregular checks ; it is shabby, no doubt 
of that, but it wears well, and he needs never to go to his 
tailor for repairs; his head is flat and his nose pointed, 
and his neck long and scrawny. Altogether, we don't 
boast of our gopher on the score of beauty ; we are afraid 
he would not take the first premium on that count ; but 
just catch him, and make soup of liim, and you will there- 
after not speak slightingly of the lowly gopher, who is only 
a tortoise. How are you to catch him.? 

Well, we hinted at the means a while ago when we men- 
tioned the noose as a food - provider. All through the 
spring and summer months, in fact almost through the 
whole year, except December and January, the gopher 
comes waddling out from its home every day, and usually 
between the hours of ten and two o'clock. 

It travels slowly around, perhaps visiting its neighbors, 
or only taking a health j^romenade in search of roots, 
grasses, and cow-peas — it being very fond of the latter, 
greatly to their detriment. Sometimes, especially in the 
spring, there are eggs to be laid ; and when this is the case 



HOME SUPPLIES. 205 

this gopher seeks a place where the sand is dry and loose ; 
here it scratches quite a large, shallo'w hole, and depositing 
some forty or fifty eggs therein, covers them and leaves 
them to hatch out at their pleasure ; it has done its duty 
by them, and has no further concern in the rearing of the 
''large family of small children" those eggs may produce. 
When they creep out to view the world, they find it all 
before them to choose whither they will go, with no mater- 
nal whispers to check the downward course they at once 
enter upon even thus early in their young lives. 

In other words, the little gopher makes for itself a little 
tunnel on the higher ground. It is never found in places 
subject to overflow ; and, by the way, this quality makes 
the gopher a good indicator of the best lands for orange 
culture ; wherever their holes are found, it is dry enough 
to set out a grove, no matter even if it be in the midst of 
the "dry season" that the selection is made. So, as we 
have said, the little gopher, issuing from the pigeon-like 
egg— pigeon-like in shape and size, but not in shell, since 
the gopher-egg is covered by a soft, tough membrane — 
makes unto itself a little cave with a tuuncl-like tail to it, 
and as it slowly grows larger so does the cave lengthen out 
into a longer and deeper tunnel with an entrance at the 
surface that corresponds with the size of the inmate. 

We have said that usually between the hours of ten and 
two the gopher comes forth for its daily promenade ; if it 
were not for this habit, it would be an extremely difficult 
thing ever to capture one. As it is, if one chooses to 
saunter around among their dwellings during this period, 
keeping a sharp look-out, he will often be rewarded by 
picking up one or more without any trouble, except that 
of carrying them home, and that, as we know from sad 
experience, is sometimes a heavy task if one is not very 
Strong. Once we picked up a fifteen-pound gopher about 



206 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

fifteen minutes' walk from home, and by the time we got 
him there he weighed at least fifty pounds. 

But if the settler does not care to hunt his tortoise in 
this manner, there is another way. Take a number of 
stout, short stakes, pointed at one end, and tie to each one 
a very strong, flexible cord, whose length must be regu- 
lated by the size of the hole where it is to be placed ; make 
a slip-knot or running noose in the cord, drive down the 
stake in the solid ground to one side and back of the go- 
pher's entrance, and then let your cord be of just such a 
length as shall allow a loose, open noose to be arranged 
across the mouth of the tunnel in such a way that the tor- 
toise can not leave his hole without becoming entangled, 
and as he continues his unconscious onward waddle he is 
suddenly brought to the end of his tether by the drawing 
tight of the noose either around his neck or leg, as the case 
may be. 

Back and forth he travels in a semi-circle, sometimes in 
a circle, until he winds himself up close to the stake, and 
then, disgusted with life, he draws back into, his shell and 
quietly awaits his fate. At other times, if the trapper is 
too long in visiting his nooses, he may find the cord worn 
away by attrition against the edges of the hole and the 
prisoner escaped ; but usually, visitiug the snares, which 
need to be marked by strips of white cloth tied to a stake 
near by, the gopher is found quiescent, and as far down 
in his tunnel as the cord will allow. Then you seize the 
cord and essay to draw him out ; but, unless the former is 
very strong, you will only succeed in sitting down rather 
ungracefully with a broken cord in your hand, while the 
released prisoner scuttles aAvay, rejoicing, to the very low- 
ermost point of his subterranean castle. Therefore it is 
always well to visit the gopher traps armed with a spade 
and a basket, the first to dig out the captive and the second 



HOME SUPPLIES. 



207 



to carry him home. It is not often that the same hole 
shelters two gophers ; but, that it is sometimes the case, 
we once proved in rather an amusing manner. 

We sallied forth, as was our daily custom, to visit our 
snares, and on approaching one of them observed a round 
object projecting part way from the hole. Eagerly we 
pounced upon that unlucky gopher, wondering why it had 
not gone in as far as the cord would permit— when, lo ! 
there was no cord attached to it at all ! We dropped it in 
the basket and looked to see what had become of the cord. 
We saw it lying inside the hole ; but it was quite heavily 
weighted. There was a captive to the noose after all ; and 
this one, having retreated as far as it could, had blocked 
up the way for another following after it. 

Deserted burrows are easily known by the pine-straw 
and trash that drift down into the hole, while one in use 
is smooth and the soil fresh and clear with distinct marks 
of shell and feet. 

Gopher stew and gopher soup, especially, are highly es- 
teemed, and so closely resemble beef in texture and taste 
that one may be easily deceived into believing it to be the 

latter. 

There is another point in this snaring of the gopher tur- 
tle that should not be overlooked. It is an important 
object to the settler to rid his land of them, for they inva- 
riably choose the highest spots, just wdiere crops are grown, 
to make their home ; and hence the interests of the two 
are certain to clash. 

The settler desires to raise cow-peas, for instance, and so 
does the gopher ; but the latter spells his kind of '' raising" 
cow-peas thus, "razing" and thoroughly he succeeds, for 
he is passionately fond of them. We have seen a quarter 
of an acre of cow-peas cut down to the ground by a few 
gophers in less than a week, and but for the prompt use 



208 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

of the noose aforesaid not a vine would have been left in 
the acre in less than a month. 

Therefore, trap this ruthless destroyer wherever his 
door-way is seen. If the family do not care to use him as 
food, cook or chop the flesh and feed it to the chickens, 
who will rejoice over the windfall, 

"Smite, slay, and spare not" the gopher, if you would 
possess your cow-peas or vegetables in peace. His shell, 
sand-papered, varnished and hung up by wires run through 
holes bored in the edges, makes an excellent hanging-bas- 
ket for trailing vines. 

"How much do gophers weigh?" do you ask. Some- 
times as much as sixteen pounds ; but they average eight 
pounds. 



"out of the depths." 209 

CHAPTER XIV. 

*'OUT OF THE DEPTHS." 

Still upon the same subject, the household larder, you 
see. But then we feel that we are excusable, for there 
are few more important or more worthy the attention of 
the settler, whose bill of * ' ways and means " is apt to be 
limited ofttimes by a shattered pocket, and quite as often 
by the state of the local market. 

Our schedule of home supplies is not exhausted, for we 
have not yet dived down beneath the surflice of the nu- 
merous lakes, large and small, which are scattered broad- 
cast over the State. We are ready for the plunge now, 
however, and have no fear but that we shall find much to 
bring up " out of the depths." 

But first of all we must have a boat ; for rarely, indeed, 
can a point be found where the water is deep enough for 
fishing close in shore with rod and line, except for ''small 
fry." We have seen human "small fry" roll up their 
trousers as far as possible and wade out rod in hand ; but 
this is not quite so comfortable or convenient a method of 
fishing as a boat would provide, and we very much incline 
to believe will never become popular, especially among 
ladies who "go a-fishing," as many do, to the benefit of 
their health and the increase of their enjoyments. 

The most prevalent ' ' water vehicle " among the old-time 
residents, and therefore presumably the most fashionable, 
is the "Florida batteau," in other words, a scow, pure and 
unadulterated — a roomy boat, and a safe one, guaranteed, 
if made after the usual broad pattern, not to upset ; but 
still not so light nor easy to row or to guide as a "water- 
carriage" of a different build. 

14 



210 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

There is about as much diversity in row-boats as there 
is in wagons; and to secure a low-priced yet well-shaped, 
steady boat, is not so easy as it may appear to those who 
have not tried it. A cheap boat is apt to be poorly 
built — cheap both in materials and w^orkmanship — of infe- 
rior woods and badly modeled. A really good, shapely 
boat can rarely be bought under fifty dollars as the mini- 
mum figure. Knowing this, we have gone to considerable 
trouble to seek out for the benefit of our settlers a relia- 
ble firm who will place in their hands a really good boat 
for a very low price. 

This firm (R. J. Douglas & Co., of Waukegan, Illinois) 
we have already had occasion to refer to, as the manufac- 
turers of the Champion windmill. The "Eureka" they 
claim, and honestly so, to be " the best boat ever put on 
the market for the money." Of a beautiful model, sharp- 
pointed at both ends (a rudder can be fitted if desired), 
with a ten-inch bottom board in place of the usual keel, 
it is at the same time swift, steady, and of light draught, 
just the very boat we need for ordinary row-boat purposes 
on our shallow-shored Florida lakes. 

The cut on next page, for which we are indebted to the 
courtesy of the builders, coupled with their own descrip- 
tion following, will give our readers a better idea of the 
natty little Eureka than any words of our own : 

"Instead of keel, it has a 10-inch bottom board, | inch 
thick, which makes it perfectly flat on the bottom, and it 
has five strakes on a side. The frames, stems and wales, 
are of selected white oak in all grades ; and in basswood 
boats the bottom and first two strakes are of pine or cedar 
and only the three upper strakes of basswood. The plank- 
ing is f inch in clinkers and ^ inch in carvel boats. The 
row-locks are of our own design, and the sockets are fast- 
ened on with bolts so that they can not pull off. Instead 



OUT OF THE DEPTHS. 



211 



of wood knees, we use malleable iron brace from wales to 
seat, which is also listened on with stove bolts. They are 
fitted with a good pair of ash oars and jfli?|fiSi;5 
malleable iron row-locks, and are seated 
for three persons, and have three coats 
of paint on them. They make fine-look- 
ing, steady, strong and very serviceable 
boats for nearly all uses. 

" Those made of basswood are cheap- 
est: the thirteen -feet boat costing $20, 
and the fifteen-feet boat $5 more ; the 
pine comes next, $25 to $30 ; and the 
cedar, which is the lightest in weight, is 
the highest in price, from $35 to $40, for 
the two sizes respectively." 

We are the proud owner of one of 
these latter, and, with one of the patent 
umbrella fixtures secured to the seat for 
shade, we ask nothing better in its line, 
either with or without the rudder; the 
latter, by the way, is an "extra" and 
costs $2. This cedar boat is so light 
that it can be readily placed in a wagon 
and taken from lake to lake. 

None of these boats weigh over one 
hundred and ten pounds, an item of no 
small importance when freight is to be 
considered, as the rate per hundred to 
Jacksonville from Waukegan is, at this 
present writing, only $5, and is likely to be less rather than 
more in the future. With such a boat as this, fishing and 
boating become a genuine pleasure ; for who does not love 
the SAvift, easy flight over the water of a light, graceful bat- 
teau, that skims along with scarcely a touch of the oars? 



212 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

And now we are ready to go a-fishing ; and, as for fish, 
the settler need not go far to seek them ; they are in every 
lake or lakelet all over the country, in every river, in 
every inlet or bay. 

In the inland lakes and rivers, the principal fish is the 
trout, as it is here called — but in reality the true "black 
bass" of the North and West. This is a large fish of fine 
flavor, and a prime favorite with every one either for boil- 
ing or frying, the specimens caught weighing all the way 
from one pound to seventeen or twenty. Trolling is one 
way to capture them ; and it is no despicable sport, as the 
boat is rowed along, to feel the sudden pull and subsequent 
jerks on the distant hooks that tell of a prisoner at the 
other end of the line — a victim of mistaken greed. What 
is there, we wonder, in that bright bit of whirling tin that 
spins around on the surface of the water that the swift 
trout should pursue and make fierce war upon it — to find 
itself, alas ! "taken in and done for"? But, after all, why 
wonder at the foolishness of a fish, when we see the same 
thing every day enacted in the highest scale of creation ? 

Trolling is not the only method of capturing the trout : 
a good-sized hook, a strong line, and a small live fish at the 
end of the hook, will be very likely to bring its reward; 
for it is on these small fish, about three to five inches long, 
that the trout principally subsist, and if there are any in 
the vicinity of your " prisoner at large," it will not be long 
before it and the hook go down and your trout goes up. 

If one wishes trout for breakfast and dinner, and has 
not time to go out on the lake and fish according to the 
old, approved method, there is another — a lazy way — of 
accomplishing the desired end. 

Take as many bottles as you please — it depends a gf)od 
deal on the size of your home lake — not small medicine 
bottles, but brandy or large wine bottles, cork them se- 



"OUT OF THE DEPTHS." 213 

curely and tie uroiuid their uecks lines of suitable length, 
to which trout-hooks are attached. 

With hook and line or net, catch, close to shore, the 
small fry needed for bait, put them in a pail of water to 
keep them alive ; then row out on the lake with them and 
the bottles; here and there, as you go, bait a bottle-hook 
Avith a live fish and drop it overboard ; then go back home, 
and once in a while take a look at the surface of the water ; 
if you have a spy or opera-glass, so much the better. It 
is surprising how far off the floating bottles can be seen, 
and if a trout has seized upon the bait, that fact is easily 
noted by the erratic movements of the bottle and the agita- 
tion of the water around it ; and then one has only to row 
out and haul in the captive. 

Another way of using the bottles is to cast them out 
over the lake, and then row slowly about among them, 
keeping watch upon them all. The time occupied is just 
the same as if fishing from the boat with one hook ; but 
the chances of a successful result are enhanced just as 
many times as there are bottle-hooks floating around. 

There is something interesting, and exciting too, in this 
novel way of fishing with "a dozen irons in the fire" — a 
dozen hooks in the water at once. The eager eyes travel 
here and there, watching each movement or suspicious bob 
of the bottle-buoy, until doubt becomes certainty, and then 
how the oars rattle in the row-locks ! Then is the time 
when, if one is in a "Florida batteau," a scow, in other 
words, he would give much to be in a " Eureka," or other 
light skiff, so as to skim the faster over the waters. That 
bobbing, dancing bottle — now laying flat on its side, now 
standing on end, now disappearing, now" popping up to the 
surface again, several yards from where it went down — is 
so very tantalizing that one is tempted to sing as a dirge : 

" Thou art so near, and yet so far." 



214 HOME LIFE IN FLOKIDA. 

The captive trout, though at the end of the Hue, five to 
eight feet below the surface, seems always to know and 
recognize the approach of an enemy as the boat nears the 
float, and the bobbings and disappearances redouble in fre- 
quency, until it often becomes a regular game of *' will-o'- 
the-wisp," to catch the bottle ; like the wicked flea, you 
put your finger on it, and it is not there. If the fish is 
large and strong, say a ten-pounder or thereabouts, the 
bottle is very likely to give the boat a little exercise in the 
way of chasing, and the enemy being rather erratic and 
prone to a change of direction at any and all times, with- 
out reason or rhyme, the sport becomes lively. 

But then, when at last a hold of the fleeing bottle is 
secured (look out for impromptu baths or capsize, though), 
and a large, fine trout lies flopping at one's feet, causing 
visions of an epicurean meal in the near future to rise 
before the palate's eye, as it were, then one forgives the 
poor fish for the struggle it has so bravely made for its life. 
Should two or three of these novel fish-floats be seen bob- 
bing around at the same time, the rule of ' ' one at a time " 
becomes tantalizing, especially if the first captive prove to 
be a refractory soft-shell turtle, as sometimes happens. ■ 

AVe have spoken of the bottles being used in this novel 
method of fishing ; but, in our own experience, we prefer 
floats made of small pieces of board twice as long as wide, 
the line being secured at one end and a slanting hole bored 
near the other, into which is driven a slender stick bearing 
a white or scarlet flag. This flag, owing to its sloping po- 
sition, almost touches the water until the float is pulled 
down at the other end by the fish, and then it rises almost 
upright, forming at all times a much plainer guide to the 
w^hereabouts of the float than does the bottle, and for this 
reason it is to be preferred ; a stout piece of wire will an- 
swer for a flag-staff for the bottles. 



*'OUT OF THE DEPTHS." 215 

The bream is another excellent fish, not nearly of so 
large a growth as the trout, but still just the right size for 
a pan-fish, full-grown specimens weighing from one to two 
pounds. These, too, are caught with hook and line, with 
minnows, earth-worms, or sawyers, as bait. Minnows are 
easily caught, close in shore, with a fine hand net ; as to 
earth-worms, we doubt if there is a country in the world 
so destitute of these familiar denizens of the Northern sub- 
terranean barn-yard as the piney-woods region of Florida. 

In the clay hammocks there are plenty of them, also in 
the muck-beds along the lakes or rivers ; but in the sands 
of the pine lands they are indeed of the genus vara avis; 
in all our own diggings and grubbings we have met with 
but two S2:)ecimens of the genuine red earth-worms, and 
can not account for the finding of those. So the earth- 
worm, as bait for fish, is a fraud for the pine-lander, and 
he has to fall back upon the fat, white, chubby "sawyer," 
whose busy chip ! chip ! can be heard beneath the bark of 
the pine trees all day and all night. 

Sawyer is the name given it, but its true name is Scolytiis 
destructor, which is the scientific designation of a small 
wood-boring beetle; and that which the Floridian terms 
the sawyer is the larvae of this insect, which, starting from 
the inner part of the tree, where the mother has laid her 
eggs, works its way outward, growing larger and fatter as 
it progresses, until, when the searching angler finds it be- 
tween the bark and the wood, nearly ready to develop into 
the full-grown state, it is a tempting tid-bit for bream and 
perch and for all the smaller fish of lake or stream. It is 
quite true that the sawyer's head is rather tough and its 
cutting tools hard and sharp ; but the rest of it is so fat 
and toothsome in their eyes, that the eager fish heed not 
these disadvantages, but rush open-mouthed at the delicious 
Scolytus destructw whenever the opportunity offers. 



216 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

A tree that has been felled or uprooted while in full 
vigor will in a few months be found riddled with small 
round holes, and with larger ones, where the beetle has 
entered to lay its eggs, and where the larvae has finally 
emerged ; and then, if with a sharp hatchet a broad ring 
of bark is removed, fine, plump sawyers will be uncovered. 
Any prostrate tree, if it has not lain on the ground for 
more than a year, will furnish the angler with an abun- 
dance of bait. 

Along the coasts, and in the salt-water bays and inlets, 
fish are extremely abundant, of fine quality and of all sizes, 
from one pound to over two hundred pounds. As for oys- 
ters, those famous shell-fish of the Northern markets, the 
sea-coasts and inlets furnish them ad libitum, and no ' ' sec- 
ond-class articles" either are the Florida bivalves, as those 
settlers who are so fortunate as to be near the source of 
supply, or who dwell along the numerous lines of railroad 
now reaching out all over the State, can certify. 

No less toothsome also are the clams which are abundant 
along the coasts, while the salt-water mullet, a fish some- 
what resembling the mackerel in taste, wdien similarly 
cured, is a splendid fish also, when fried, fresh from the 
water. 

The inland lakes, both large and small, are not only the 
homes of many kinds of fish other than the trout or bass, 
such as bream, perch, pike, cat-fish, gar-fish, but of two 
species of turtle, which are less easily caught than the go- 
pher, it is true, but still well worth the trouble of capture. 
One of these is a soft-shell, and an ugly fellow he is both 
to look at and to handle. He weighs any where from two 
pounds to twenty, has a hard, round, black center-piece 
on his back, a veritable shield, and around its edges a wide 
margin of leathery - like substance, soft, but extremely 
tough ; from beneath this attractive attire protrude four 



"OUT OF THE DEPTHS." 217 

long, scrawny, black legs, a short, pointed tail and a long, 
thin neck with a slender head, terminating in a round, pro- 
jecting snout, any thing but handsome to look at, and any 
thing but comforting to feel! For this soft-shell turtle 
is by no means the meek, unresisting creature that the go- 
pher is, and when captured has a way of expressing his 
opinion that is very apt to prove painful and lacerating to 
one's feelings. 

In this respect our Florida soft-shell is quite the equal 
of his cultivated Northern brother, the " snapper," and it 
behooves his captors to watch sharply that their respective 
positions are not reversed ; for the soft-shell not only snaps 
with his horny, vise-like snout at any thing that comes 
within reaching distance, but he stretches out his scrawny 
neck, fixes his glittering little eyes upon you, and then, 
bracing his hind legs, actually springs toward you, lunge- 
ing again and again with a determination worthy of a 
higher scale in creation ; and when he has given this little 
game up as a "bad job," and has settled down resignedly, 
it only needs a stick poked at him to rouse him up once 
more to a series of leaps and springs rather astonishing in 
a turtle. 

"Once upon a time," before we were so well versed in 
the tortuous ways of this ungainly denizen of the lakes, 
we picked up a small (two-pound) specimen that was wad- 
dling along over plowed ground, seeking a place wherein 
to deposit its eggs. 

We were delighted with our prize, the first of its kind, 
and holding it out in front of us, a hand on either side, 
hastened homeward. We hastened — yes, and a few steps 
further we concluded, quite suddenly, to lay down our 
prize. There was no hesitation about our movements ; our 
resolution was quick but unfaltering, and in point of time 
coincided with a vicious dart of the horny snout in the 



218 HOME LIFE IN FLOEIDA. ' 

direction of our iingers. We were not anxious to see wliat 
the bones that underlaid our ''too tender flesh" looked 
like, so we called aloud for a shovel and a basket, and while 
they were on the way admonished our frisky turtle with 
a stick, assuring him that his angry plunges were futile ; 
then we shoveled him into the basket and the next day 
he appeared in a harmless character on our table, and a 
very good stew he made— what there was of him. 

We have outlined above one way of catching these soft- 
shells. In the spring of the year, from February or March, 
until late in the summer, they leave their watery homes 
and waddle slowly along on dry land to lay their eggs. 
Finding a spot that suits them, they scratch a deep hole 
in the sand, deposit a long string of small soft-shell eggs 
in it, cover them uj) and leave them for the hot sun to 
hatch, knowing, as we must suppose, that their young, as 
soon as they emerge from the egg, will follow their instinct, 
which leads them at once to the nearest water. 

It is a curious fact, that if there be a fence near the lake 
from which the turtle emerges, it will follow the line for 
a long distance, and if an angle is met with there it will 
halt, too stupid to turn and retrace its steps or to follow 
the fence line in its new direction. On our own premises 
there is just such a "corner," which we may well term "a 
corner in turtle." Following a fence which runs close to 
the lakelet in which they live, the soft-shells stop short on 
reaching a sharp augle not far from the house, and, after 
vainly butting and scratching the pickets, draw their lieads 
into their shells and disdainfully await the upshot of their 
adventure — which is the stew-pan. 

So marked is this predilection for the fence, that all 
through the turtle season a sharp watch is kept on it, and 
especially on the "corner," which was originally our nurs- 
ery, but had to be abandoned after the turtle selected it 



''OUT OF THE DEPTHS." 219 

for the scene of their antics, as they were like the famous 
" bull in a China-shop." 

The "soft-shells" are frequently caught by the hook and 
line, and for this purpose a large, strong hook and a stout 
line are needful, the former baited with raw meat or, which 
is quite as good if not better, bits of red flannel. Some- 
times they are caught when the hook is dropped deep, but 
more frequently when it is shallow, that is, very near the 
surface of the water, if not actually on the surface. 

Where one's lake is near the house, so as to be easily 
watched, it is a good plan to drive down a stake in as deep 
water as can be conveniently done and then stretch a rope 
from this 'stake to another nearer the shore. This rope 
should be a foot or more above the water, and at intervals 
of about three feet large hooks should be hung from it, 
some on short, some on longer lines. Keep these hooks 
permanently baited with meat or red flannel, and look at 
the rope now and then to see if any thing is jerking at the 
lines. If there is, jump in your skiff* or scow, take a sharp 
hatchet along, and in a moment more you can haul your 
prize on board before it has time to say " Jack Robinson," 
or to practice 'Til bite you." Clip its head off" with one 
quick blow, but remember that the latter is dangerous for 
several minutes after becoming independent of its late 
boon companion, the body! The jaws have considerable 
muscular vitality left in them, and need but a touch to 
close Avith unpleasant vigor on finger or toe. 

Sometimes the soft-shell gets caught in a manner as un- 
expected to its captor as to itself, by snapping at an inno- 
cent-looking little fish that has been prepared as bait for 
trout ; and when this happens the result is very likely to 
be "an elephant" on the hands of the angler ; for, when one 
sallies forth to catch a peaceable fish, one is not often armed 
to do battle with a ferocious enemy in the shape of a turtle. 



220 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Not long ago a lady friend of the writer's set out alone 
to row quite a distance to reach a certain fishing-ground, 
and on reaching it, hot and tired, her first capture — quite a 
superfluous one too she considered it — was a fifteen-pound 
"soft-shell." What to do Avitli it? was the question, and 
one not to be pushed aside for future settlement. It could 
have been met by cutting the line and allowing the angry 
leviathan of the deep to take itself and the hook to the 
great unknown below. 

But our friend was plucky and hooks were scarce, and 
so were such monster turtles as this. To cut the line was 
out of the question ; yet here was the ugly creature ready 
for a snap, and nothing but a little pocket-knife at hand 
to amputate the threatening jaws — no hatchet nearer than 
a mile across the water. And the fish, large trout, were 
leaping all around, and this uninvited guest had monopo- 
lized the only hook ! It was a hard case. But our friend 
met it by tying the line short to a thwart at a safe distance 
from her feet, taking up the oars and rowing home with 
her captive, who took the place of the anticipated trout- 
dinner. But now, when she goes a-fishing, several hooks 
and lines and a hatchet go to make up her outfit. 

If only one can forget how very uninviting the soft-shell 
appears when alive, and look at it only as it is on the table 
— carefully stewed and seasoned and, if preferred, a little 
wine added — no complaint will be made as to the quality 
of the meat ; and it is besides very nutritious. 

There is yet another turtle found in all lakes, large or 
small. But this one is neither snappish nor homely in as- 
pect ; on the contrary, its appearance is rather attractive, 
and its manners of the gentlest. Its shell is hard, decid- 
edly arched, and well covered with clearly defined black 
and orange blocks ; it is rarely caught with the hook; and 
almost the only chance of capture is to watch the neigh- 



"OUT OF THE DEPTHS." 221 

borhood of the lakes in the spring-time on sunshiny days, 
as then, like the soft-shell, it leaves the water and travels 
up to the soft sand to lay its eggs. 

This turtle, as usually found, weighs from six to ten 
pounds, and Avhile not quite as rich in flavor as its home- 
lier brother is still an excellent article of food. 

It is no uncommon thing, when plowing or walking in a 
field in the late spring, to turn up a queer little yellow 
and black object, no bigger than a silver quarter or half- 
dollar, which is a young hard-shell turtle, recently hatched ; 
they are pretty creatures, and their markings as clearly 
defined as those of the adults. They are readily domesti- 
cated, so that they will eat from the hand without fear. 
Six years ago the writer packed one of these tiny turtles 
in a tin box with damp moss and sent it North, where it 
still flourishes in a New Jersey aquarium, very little larger 
than when it was picked up in the Florida sands, the 
growth of a turtle being very slow. Water turtle should 
be killed at once, unless there is water to keep them in, as 
they can not live more than a day or two out of their na- 
tive element. In this they are unlike the gopher tortoise, 
which is all the better for being kept three or four days in 
a box or barrel. 

There is one very odd quality possessed by the flesh of 
these several kinds of turtle (including the gopher) in 
common with the great sea-turtle that are so abundant all 
alon^: the twelve hundred miles of Florida's sea-coast. 

This curious quality was thus described in the year 1682 
by one "T. A., Clerk on board His Majesty's ship, the 
Richmond " : 

" This I am assured of," says he, " that after it is cut to 
pieces, it retains a sensation of life three times longer than 
any known creature of the creation. Completely, six 
hours after the butcher has cut them up and into pieces, 



222 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

their maugled bodies, I have seen the callope (caUipee, a 
part of the flesh), wheu going to be seasoned, with pieces 
of their flesh ready to cut into steaks, vehemently contract 
with great reluctancy, rise against the knife, and sometimes 
the whole mass of flesh in a visible tremulation and concus- 
sion. To him who first sees, it seems strange and admir- 
able." 

This same old-time writer records of the turtle, that " it 
has three hearts ;" and to this superabundance of the vital 
organs he ascribes its wonderful " tenacity of life." 

It is really true that hours after the turtle has been cut 
up the flesh will, when salt is sprinkled upon it, contract 
violently, and jerk and quiver in a manner that looks, to 
say the least of it, rather uncanny. 

The true explanation is, not actual vitality, but some 
peculiar quality of the muscles and nerves by which gal- 
vanic or electric action is generated by the action of salt, 
or, as we have sometimes seen it, by hot water. The vio- 
lent twitching is not pleasant to look at ; but is not as 
'* Ye Ancient Mariner," "T. A.," would have us believe, 
"a sensation of life." 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — OLD STYLE. 223 

CHAPTER XV. 

THE DAIRY QUESTION — OLD STYLE. 

And now we arrive at the dairy question, and a very- 
important one it is too, as every housekeeper knows. 

"A curous kind of a critter is a Florida keow, anyway 
you take her ; curous, mighty curous." 

So pronounced a tall, raw-boned New-Englander, as he 
stood on the deck of the staunch steamer that was bearing 
the writer to a new Florida home. 

" Why 'curious'?" we pondered, thinking over this cow 
question ; but we did not like to betray our ignorance by 
asking questions ; so we waited patiently until time and 
experience had solved the mystery. 

And now we have come to the conclusion that our New- 
Englander was right. Viewing the native Florida cow, as 
usually treated, with the eyes of a thrifty Northern farmer 
or dairyman, it is indeed a " curous critter, " and its mode 
of treatment more "curous" still. 

To the great mass of the people in the North, the term 
"cow-penning," as regards land, is an unknown quantity, 
and very few can give an intelligent reply to the question, 
' ' What does it mean ? " 

What its true significance is, we shall see presently; just 
now, to begin at the beginning, we will turn our attention 
to the "curous critter" itself. 

For many years past immense herds of cattle have been 
roaming all over the noble State of Florida, and luxuriat- 
ing in her genial climate ; but of late these herds have 
been scattered, and driven back further and further south, 
until now, in the northern, middle, and eastern counties, 
we find their representatives comparatively ' ' few and far 



224 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

between," aud all in a state of captivity, and prisoners 
at large. 

AYliere did they come from originally ? Well, to answer 
that question, we must go back to the first settlements of 
Florida, those of Spain and France, which w^e have else- 
where referred to. 

The early settlers of these rival nations imported from 
their home-countries numbers of the finest cattle, and here 
they flourished until, in the frequent and bloody quarrels 
between the two sets of pioneers, French and Spanish, set- 
tlers and settlements were alike sw^pt out of existence, and 
such cattle as were not killed on the spot escaped to the 
forests and became the progenitors of the present race of 
Florida cows, and a degenerate race they are, we must con- 
fess ; in other words, they have passed from a state of civ- 
ilization, as it were, back to a state of nature. 

For every one knows that the splendid milkers of the 
modern dairy are the outcome of generation after genera- 
tion of careful selection, breeding and cross-breeding, of 
nutritious food and plenty of it, of good shelter and gentle 
treatment. 

A copious flow^ of milk is never met with in wdld cattle, 
and practically Florida cattle are wild, inasmuch as neg- 
lect, unkind and injudicious treatment have set them far 
along on the backward track toward that natural state 
wherein little if any more milk is secreted than is needed 
by the calf. 

Dame Nature, you see, is not like man ; she never wastes 
her materials or energies, but treasures up all her powers, 
and as soon as their exercise is not needed at one point 
directs them to another. 

For the first few weeks of its life a calf needs milk, needs 
not much in quantity but richness in quality, and thus na- 
ture provides it : the irregular milking, varying in quan- 



THE DAIRY QUESTION' — OLD STYLE. 225 

tity and time, conduces directly to the drying up of the 
lacteal organs, which is just what she intends it shall do. 
And, as we have said, this plan of hers can only be over- 
come by patient years of care and attention directed to the 
one object of producing heavy milkers. 

The progenitors of the present much-maligned Florida 
cows were of the finest breeds then known to Europe ; it 
would not have paid the early settlers to bring inferior 
stock across the ocean, and their degeneration is due solely 
to causes that would and do affect the human race under 
the same circumstances. 

Take the members of the noblest, bluest-blooded family 
in the world, and turn them "out to graze," as it were, 
and to shift for themselves, w^here, a few generations later, 
would be their culture, their signs of nobility? 

Then don't ridicule our Florida cow for being what neg- 
lect and ill-treatment has made it, a small producer of milk ; 
rather let us give it the needed capital to invest in the 
manufacture, and not only its owner but the scofiing out- 
side world will stand aside astonished to see what this slan- 
dered animal can do w^hen it has a fair chance. 

And now, having spoken a good word in advance in be- 
half of our native cow, let us go more into details. 

Every settler who comes into this State, unless indeed 
he takes up his abode in one of the few cities, and some- 
times even then, must make up his mind either to use no 
milk, or condensed milk, or to invest in several Florida 
cows, or one thoroughbred at least. We say "several" 
advisedly, as will be seen directly. 

Very few are willing to do without this every-day article 
of civilized life, or to be content with condensed milk, 
which, excellent so far it goes, does not go far enough to 
meet all culinary demands. 

So the purchase of cows is soon decided upon and the 

15 



226 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

next step is to prepare a pen for their reception. A barn 
or barn-yard or even a shed is not necessary in Florida for 
the protection of stock, unless they are to be kept confined, 
and this is rarely done with common stock. 

The first step is to clean the ground where the pen is to 
be made, bearing in mind always that this spot will be the 
future vegetable garden, especially on pine land, and it 
Avill be enriched by the nightly penning of the cows. 

Many simply girdle the pine trees and leave them stand- 
ing, to litter the ground with falling bark and boughs for 
years to come, until they fall to the ground bodily, crush- 
ing the fence or any valuable trees that may be near. This 
is a slovenly mode of procedure, unworthy of a thrifty 
farmer. 

It is a grand old axiom that '' Whatever is worth doing 
is worth doing well," and we commend it to the attention 
of nine tenths of our Florida farmers. 

In preparing the place for a coAV-pen, *' do it well ;" that 
is, take every stump out of the ground, don't leave a sin- 
gle one to be a perpetual eye-sore and a perpetual deposi- 
tory for weeds and ants, which will surely take up their 
abode around the stump where the plow can not reach 
them. Let the ground be made clear of stumps and trash, 
and then plow it thoroughly, two or three times if possible 
before putting up the fence, which latter is usually made 
of rails laid in the '' Virginia style," the " worm fence" of 
the North. 

The size of the pen varies with the number of cows to 
be penned, and this is a matter of which the settler must 
judge for himself; but it is always about twice as long as 
it is Avide, and should be so situated, if possible, that one 
end abuts on the open Avoods and the other upon an in- 
closed field or Avoodland, Avhere the calves may have a 
range. It is a cruel thing to shut them up all day long in 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — OLD STYLE. 227 

the pen without food or shelter ; and yet this is, we are 
sorry to say, the common practice all over the State. 

The pen must have two entrances from the outside, one 
into the pen, the other into the field ; and these are made 
by arranging one panel of the fence so that the rails may 
be easily slipped back and one end dropped to the ground. 

Across or near the center of the inclosure another fence 
is run to divide it into two pens, for without this precau- 
tion there would be *'no end" of confusion during the 
milking process; this too must have a panel arranged in 
the center with drop rails, thus affording an easy access 
from one division to the other. 

And now every thing is ready for the reception of the 
expected guests, and the more there are of these the better, 
not only that the family may have a good supply of milk, 
but that the future garden-spot may be the richer. 

We have already intimated pretty plainly that Florida 
cows are not remarkable for the large quantity of milk 
they yield. One that will give two quarts and a pint at 
a milking, the calf taking a liberal share of the same, is 
regarded as a better cow than the average, and yet what 
Northern farmer would give shelter to this "better coav?" 
Not one, for he could not afford it ; but in our genial cli- 
mate the question of expense for shelter and food is not 
considered, for they are not required. In the first place, 
cows are cheap ; an " extra good one " can be bought for 
$20, and the average kinds, $12 to $15, always, be it un- 
derstood, with a young calf; for, as the Chinaman says, 
"no calfee, no milkee ! " In the second place, the value 
of land that has been cow-penned is greatly enhanced, so 
highly (and justly so) is it valued, that many Floridians 
purchase herds of cattle for the sole purpose of penning 
them up at night. 

The vast pine forests are filled with the far-famed wire- 



228 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

grass, a long wire-like grass growing in tufts, said to be 
very nutritious, and upon which the cattle certainly do 
grow fat. In the hammocks are other luxuriant grasses 
and shrubs, and an abundance of the long, gray moss, so 
widely known as " Florida moss." These forests, both pine 
and hammock, afford free pasturage to all, and the cows 
being turned out all the day long feed themselves without 
expense to their owners both winter and summer. 

The calves are kept at home during the milking season, 
not only to prevent them from getting more than their 
share of the milk, but also as a hostage to secure their 
mothers' return at night, and as a rule their detention has 
the desired effect. The cow, turned out in the morning, 
comes back to the pen toward evening with curious regu- 
larity. We have often wondered how they manage it ; for 
sometimes they wander much farther afield than at others, 
yet almost invariably they may be seen at the same hour 
solemnly marching into the pen where their eager little 
ones are anxiously waiting their advent ; for they too know^ 
the hour for their supper-time, and may be found gazing 
wistfully through the bars at their sedate-looking parents, 
murmuring in low-eved accents the mournful refrain, 

"Thou art so near, and yet so far." 

The whole process of milking a Florida cow by what we 
may term the ''native method," is full of novelty and 
amusement to a stranger. The milker drops the sliding 
bars of the dividing fence, and one of the patiently- waiting 
cows steps through into the calves' pen to be met ere fairly 
clear of the rails by an instant bombardment from its lov- 
ing, most disinterested child ; and it behooves the milker, 
if he wants to secure any portion of the lacteal fluid, to 
be very quick in putting up the bars again and gaining 
the side of the cow just admitted. 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — OLD STYLE. 229 

While the calf is very young it is allowed full control 
of three of the teats ; when it is two months old, if strong 
and healthy, two teats are enough ; as it grows still older, 
one teat only is given up to it ; and at last, when the calf 
is five or six mouths old and has become as expert a grazer 
as its mother, it has no need of any milk at all. 

But Avoe be to him who should seek to separate it from 
its mother, hoping to get all the milk himself! The result 
would be disastrous. 

We have already seen how nearly the native Florida cow 
has gone back to its natural or wild state, and in this state 
the milk never "comes" until the teats are pulled upon 
by the calf; hence the cow persistently holds back her 
milk till her offspring draws it down, and it is very rarely 
that she can be induced to do otherW'ise, So long as the 
milking continues, the calf must be allowed to pull for a 
few moments on one teat at least, even if it should be a 
year or more old, as often happens. 

Of course this makes the process of milking rather an 
arduous one, for the older and stronger the en If becomes, 
the more impatient is it of any restriction placed upon its 
raid on the milk-bag ; the moment the calf ranges along- 
side of its mother, the milker must be ready to grasp the 
teats not intended for its use, and to hold them until the 
milk is fairly down. Very often it comes slowly, and then 
terrific is the bombardment the impatient offspring admin- 
isters to its usually gentle mother; its violence and fre- 
quency is apt to repeatedly jerk the reserved teats aw^ay 
from the milker's hand, and, if not recovered on the in- 
stant, ' ' presto ! change ! " instead of a full teat there is an 
empty one ! 

Not only so, but unless the milker is wise enough to go 
down on one knee and make a brace for the cow^ either 
with his head, or by placing his hand on her side and his 



230 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

elbow on his own knee, she will very likely be upset or so 
''hustled" ascaiust him as to lay him on his back. 

Usually the cow does not seem to object to this energetic 
attack, but patiently stands as still as she can, chewing the 
cud and sleepily nodding, though she does sometimes pro- 
test against it by moving forward a step or two after each 
thump, and every such action must be followed up by the 
milker instantaneously or he will lose his share ; for the 
calf, like its mother, is " a curous critter," and ever on the 
watch for an opportunity to take possession of the coveted 
reserve. 

The milker holds the teats, one, two, or three, as it may 
chance, until he feels them swelling out, then the milk has 
" come ; " a moment or two longer he waits '' to make as- 
surance doubly sure," and then, if he is alone in the pen, 
he springs like a madman to the sliding panel, drops the 
bars, rushes back and drags the calf forcibly from its 
mother's side, giving the latter the command to *'go!" 

It is curious how soon both the cow and calf learn the 
meaning of this summary injunction : the one steps back 
into the pen with the other cows and the other watches its 
retreat mournfully, licking its foam-flecked lips the while, 
but seldom making any attempt to follow its dam. 

Then the milker puts up the bars and proceeds to milk 
the cow ; no generous pail has he into which the copious 
white streams go churning and foaming ; his pail stands 
in a safe corner by the fence or is hung on a hook, and in 
his hand he holds a two-quart milking-cup — for the Florida 
milker can use only one hand in the process, the other 
must hold the cup that receives the milk. He must be 
ever on the qui vive for unexpected movements, for the 
cows are not the steady, well-trained animals of the north- 
ern dairies. There is a difference in them, it is true ; with 
the steady ' ' old stagers " he may kneel on one knee and 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — OLD STYLE. 231 

milk in comparative comfort ; but if he has to deal with a 
half-trained cow he will have to stand stooping just low 
enough to grasp the teats, and so be ready to follow or 
avoid any eccentric movement of body or leg, the latter 
having sometimes a tendency to fly upward on small or no 
provocation. 

More often than not a return of the calf and a second 
separation and milking are necessary, because the cow does 
not " give down " all her milk at the first invitation ; when 
the milker is satisfied that he has all he can get, or needs, 
the cow is returned to the calf and the latter is left to fin- 
ish up at leisure, while the same tedious process is being 
gone through with the other cows. 

This mode of milking is only one of several methods of 
dealing with the cow and calf, and is adopted by those 
who are too dainty to be " bothered " by allowing the calf 
to pull upon one or two teats while they are milking the 
others. This latter is really the best way as well as the 
most expeditious, for the milk comes down steadily with- 
out intermission until the supply is exhausted, and then 
the calf is allowed to clean up the remnants, while. the 
milker calls out "Next." 

It has the disadvantage, however, of proceeding in the 
face of a vigorous bombardment that ever and anon jerks 
the teats away, and of requiring an occasional wiping of 
foam from finger and teats; but one gets used to these 
trifles by and by. 

Another way when the milker has an assistant (as should 
always be the case), is for the latter to place a stout rope 
or broad leather collar around the calf's neck, and then, 
when the milk has " come," to pull it away till the milker 
gets through or desires its return to "draw" any milk 
that may be left. This method is quicker than the first, 
and neater than the second. Frequently, however, the 



232 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

second mode of milking is the only one practicable, be- 
cause it is not every Florida cow that will permit herself 
to be milked, unless the calf is actually milking her at the 
same time. 

Three pints of milk to each cow at a milking is a fair 
yield, and where there are five or six at least, as is usually 
the case, even this counts up and adds no little to the com- 
fort and economy of the household, giving an abundant 
supply of milk and cream, "cottage cheese," and butter. 

No doubt it seems very much like "much ado about 
nothing" to the Northern farmer, with his fifteen and 
twenty-quart cows; but it must be considered that these 
Florida cows cost their owners nothing to keep them, little 
to buy, and that while they give him milk and butter they 
are at the same time doing what is more important, enrich- 
ing the land by their droppings when shut in for the night. 
Many Floridians, as we have said, keep cattle for this pur- 
pose alone, and were this their only value they would be a 
good investment as commercial fertilizers. 

The high pine lands of Florida are not, as a rule, very 
rich lands ; but they are what is better, healthy. The low 
hammock lauds are rich, but they are unhealthy as a rule, 
and their life-long denizens will usually be found putty- 
colored of face and languid of manner, caring little for 
progress and still less for personal exertion, because all the 
spirit and energy are sapped out of them by the subtle ma- 
laria that haunts the beautiful hammocks and renders re- 
pulsive what else would be most charming. Understand, 
however, that this does not apply to the less frequent high 
hammocks. 

Perhaps it is just as well that this is so, too, because 
human nature is apt to be unreasonable and pugnacious. 
Hammock lands are limited in area, and if they were very 
desirable in all respects as places of residence every one 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — OLD STYLE. 233 

would want them, and, as a matter of course, every one 
could not get them; and then would Florida be turned 
topsy-turvey, and the case of the celebrated "Kilkenny 
cats" would become a case of " Florida Crackers." 

As it is, however, the bulk of the populace are wise 
enough to prefer the poorer pine lands with health to the 
rich low-hammock lands with disease ; the former can be 
fertilized and made sufficiently rich, the latter can not be 
made healthy. 

And one of the cheapest and most popular means of en- 
riching the land is that of cow-penning it. It is, as it were, 
" killing two birds with one stone." Milk, butter, fertil- 
izer, all in one ; who could ask for more ? 

The more cow-penned land one has the more valuable is 
his property ; for this is not an evanescent enriching ; once 
fertilized in this manner, the land continues to produce 
good crops of fruit or vegetables, as the case may be, for 
many years thereafter, and no grove is more healthy or 
prolific than one that is set out on cow-penned land. 

"How long does it take to thus enrich the land?" you 
ask. 

That depends entirely on the number of animals penned 
and the space inclosed. The rule is to have the ground 
well covered with "droppings" before starting a new pen. 
When this is accomplished, be it sooner or later, it is time 
to move on, if the raising of sweet potatoes is the object 
in view ; if other vegetables requiring a richer soil are de- 
sired, then it is advisable to plow the ground at this stage, 
and begin the cow-penning again on the same space. 

From March till November the cattle night after night 
are shut in their inclosure, and where one owns twenty 
head or more, it is surprising how much poor laud will be 
transformed into rich land in the course of a single season 
before it is time to "turn the cows out." 



234 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

And now as to the cow-pen itself. We have already 
seen how important a matter the enriching of the land by 
means of the nightly penning of the cows is to the Flor- 
ida farmer. But it might easily be made the source of 
much greater riches than it is. 

The usual mode, as we have said, is to plow the land be- 
fore penning the cows, and, after the ground is well cov- 
ered with droppings, to plow and inclose another space, 
using the first as a garden or sweet potato patch. 

By this primitive method the most valuable portions of 
the manure are totally lost ; and yet the average farmer 
who follows it thinks he is doing the best he can. 

The droppings are left for weeks or mouths on the sur- 
face of the ground, leached by sun, rain, and air, the am- 
monia, that most valuable plant-food, escaping into the air 
as fast as the manure is deposited, while the liquid portion 
evaporates so as to be a complete loss, and, as every one 
knows, this is the most valuable of all manures. 

Now matters might easily be managed much better than 
this. We would suggest that the cow-pen, instead of be- 
ing made movable, be a permanent one. 

Make it a barn-yard instead of a pen, and then there 
could be a roomy shed placed in one corner of the calves' 
division, into which the cows might enter from the one 
side and the calves from the other; so that the milker 
would not only be protected from sun and rain while milk- 
ing (and the latter is a very frequent accompaniment to 
the dainty pleasures of the cow-pen, especially in June, 
July, August, and September), but would also be saved 
from kneeling down in the midst of the uucleanliness at- 
tendant upon the usual method. 

But this would be only an incidental gain, as it w^ere; 
the greatest gain of all, apart from the comfort of the 
milker, would be found in the increased amount and vastly 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — OLD STYLE. 235 

improved quality of the fertilizing substances accumulating 
in the yard under the new regime. 

Before and during the cows' home season, haul into the 
yard a thick layer of muck, then another of leaves, sur- 
face mold, or grass; next, more muck, and over all pine 
needles and leaves and grass, or any other of the odds and 
ends of rottable matter that may be had for the gathering 
around every Florida home. 

The more and the deeper the amount of trash collected 
the better ; the latter will absorb and retain the liquid ma- 
nure, and the solid will be trampled down into the mass 
and their value preserved intact, especially if an occa- 
sional sprinkling of land-plaster, just enough to whiten 
the surface, is given. - 

Keep adding to the pile, preserving its level surface all 
the season, or, if preferred, remove the first installment at 
the end of three or four months and commence afresh. 

The result will be a fertilizer especially adapted to orange 
trees, or in fact to any other species of vegetation — rich 
enough to produce splendid results, yet not rich enough 
to scald seeds or roots. 

By adopting this method not only will additional com- 
fort be provided for the milker, but the same number of 
cows will furnish five-fold the amount of a far more valu- 
able fertilizer than that obtained by the slovenly method 
now almost invariably practiced. 

Another shed, made of the "rough edge" boards, sold 
so cheaply by our saw-mills, would add not a little to the 
comfort of the cows, not only as aflTording shelter during 
the heavy night rains, so common in the summer and early 
fall, but as a feeding place. Under this shed, built in the 
cow's division, should be placed boxes containing salt, so 
arranged that the cows may have free access to them. It 
is a great mistake to suppose that Florida cows do not need 



236 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

salt; they do need it just as much as any other cows, only 
they are not, as a rule, educated to eating it ; give them 
a chance to find out what it is, and they will seek it as 
eagerly as any Northern cow. 

It is necessary to the preservation of their health, and 
is in fact one of the most powerful of those preventives 
an ounce of which is "worth more than a pound of cure." 
Equal quantities of salt and oak-wood ashes mixed together 
in water and then dried in large lumps will, it is said, draw 
homeward the most refractory cows, so extremely fond of 
it are they. Try it and see. 

All through the summer, from spring until fall, the wire- 
grass and shrubs of the piney woods furnish ample susten- 
ance to the cattle that roam at large far and wide. But, 
as winter draws near, the gr^ss ceases to grow and becomes 
tough and dry, while the shrubs drop their leaves, and the 
saw-palmetto, on which also they feed, loses the crispness 
that seems to be its chief attraction. 

Then the cows begin to come honae later and later, even 
those that have hitherto been in the habit of coming in 
early, and the milking has to be done by the light of a fire 
built in the pen, or by that of a lantern ; the latter is much 
more convenient, and its rays are quite sufl^icient to guide 
both the milker and the cows. 

This coming home late to their calves, all through the 
season, is a fault of which not a few Florida cows are 
guilty ; but who can blame them, seeing how entirely their 
education has been neglected and how very badly they 
have been brought up ! In fact, like the celebrated Topsy, 
they have had no bringing up, they have "just growed." 

This vexatious fault that we have mentioned is one that 
may, however, be easily corrected. All that is necessary 
to bring the cows home regularly at or before dusk is a 
few stalks of corn-fodder, a handful of cow-pea vines, or 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — OLD ST^LE. 237 

some such little tid-bit, fed to them after the evening milk- 
ing is over. 

Let every settler who is annoyed by his cows keeping 
late hours try this plan, and emphasize it by placing here 
and there in the pen small boxes containing coarse or rock 
salt, and he will have no further occasion to complain of 
his cows ; we have tried it, and know whereof we write. 

It is really wonderful how marked is the effect of such a 
simple mode of treatment. We have known two neigh- 
bors living side by side, the one never fed his cows at all, 
and each afternoon toward dusk was obliged to mount his 
horse and search the woods for several miles around, utter- 
ing the while the peculiar " cow^-call," which each man 
varies to suit himself, the several herds soon learning the 
particular call to which they owe fealty. This our neigh- 
bor had to do each afternoon, no matter how inconvenient 
it might be — either this, or else to wait the voluntary re- 
turn of his cows, and be prepared to milk them at any 
hour they might choose betw^een early eyeuing and dawn. 
The other neighbor fed his cow^s after the evening milking 
was over, only a mere handful of green or cured fodder, 
and this was enough to bring them home regul^i'ly before 
dark; never once was he obliged to seek them; not only 
so, but this extra feed, meager as it was, made a marked 
difference in the yield of milk. 

Moral : It pays w^ell to feed one's cows at night, be it 
ever so little. 

It is curious how these same uneducated Florida cows 
show' their knowledge as to the proper time for them to be 
turned out into the hammock- world w^ith their offspring 
at their side ; whether it be the diminishing supply of ten- 
der grass, the shortening days, the cooler weather, or some 
mysterious internal instinct, certain it is that they do know, 
and if their calves are not in due time set at liberty to 



238 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

wander forth with their dams to the luxuriant hammock, 
the latter will, sooner or later, betake themselves to their 
usual winter haunts minus their offspring. 

And then, when this happens, their owner has a perplex- 
ing problem before him ; whether to turn the little ones 
out (first marking and branding them) to shift for them- 
selves, or to feed them at home all winter. In nine cases 
out of ten the latter is simply impossible ; so out they must 
go, alone — in all likelihood never more to be seen by their 
owners. 

From the first to the middle of November is the usual 
time of turning out the cows, and it is not wise to defer it 
later, as both cows and calves are apt to suffer from a short 
supply of food. 

All through the mild Florida winter the open hammock 
lands, scattered all over the country, are alive with the 
cattle thus set adrift by their owners, each of whom has 
his own particular brand and ear-mark by which to identify 
his property. 

Numerous natural grasses and shrubs grow all winter 
long under the dense shelter of the grand old oaks of the 
Florida hammocks, and the long gray moss which lends so 
weird a charm to the scene affords also no despicable source 
of nourishment to the cattle who take up their temporary 
residence in its midst. 

''Once upon a time," when we were unversed in the 
*'curous" ways of this "curous critter," we used to won- 
der why there was so little moss hanging low down from 
the oak trees. Noav we wonder no more ; we know. The 
cows confiscate all that comes within their reach, and that 
is why the human moss-robbers must literally " look aloft" 
for their share of the booty, upon which, doubtless, many 
a hungry cow has looked with wistful eye. 

As a rule the cows which are hammock-fed during the 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — OLD STYLE. 239 

winter season, that is from November to the end of Feb- 
ruary, come back to the pens plump and in good condition, 
when they come at all. 

For it is not to be supposed that this promiscuous '' turn- 
ing-out " year after year is going to continue without occa- 
sional losses. It not uufrequently happens that cows dis- 
appear from their owners' ken, in spite of all searching for 
them far and wide. Sometimes they die ; sometimes they 
are killed and eaten by unscrupulous parties, usually of 
the colored persuasion ; sometimes the}^ stray away of them- 
selves, having quarreled perhaps v.ith the companions of 
their accustomed haunts ; but all that their owners know 
of a certainty is that they "are gone, but not forgotten." 
As to the calves of the previous season, no surprise is felt 
if they are missing; in fact, if a calf born one winter or 
spring lives to be turned out with its dam in the fall, the 
surprise comes in just there, and no after performance of 
that calf need excite the least astonishment. 

For, be it known, that it is a comparatively rare thing for 
a Florida calf to survive its first summer ; seldom does it 
pass its sixth month. It is a more common thing than 
otherwise for the cattle owner to lose eight out of ten 
calves before the season is over. 

The reason for this great mortality is not far to seek. In 
the first place generations of exposure, neglect, and ill- 
treatment, combined with a constant "breeding in and in," 
have weakened the Florida native stock, and, as a natural 
consequence, the calves have but little stamina, and tlie 
modicum they do possess is destroyed by the treatment 
they receive, in nine cases out of ten, from the day of 
their arrival in the cow-pen. This latter is the true cause 
of the enormous mortality among Florida calves, and it is 
full time that our people were wakened up to that fact. 

What Northern farmer would dream of shutting up his 



240 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

calves in a small inclosure, devoid of tree or grass, keep- 
ing them all through the long summer months without 
shade or water, and without food as well, except a scanty 
supply of milk morning and evening ? 

Yet this is w^hat nearly all the old-style Florida popu- 
lation do! The older "Cracker" portion, because their 
fathers did it before them ; and the less intelligent of tlie 
new-comers, because "it is the custom of the country ; " 
and so they suppose it to be all right, until they find their 
calves dying off and their cows — w- ho persistently hold 
back their milk until coaxed by the gentle lips of their 
offspring — "drying up," as a consequence of the cruel, 
short-sighted policy pursued toward the latter. 

The W'Onder is that a single calf survives such an ordeal. 
We have often looked into pens on a hot summer's day 
and felt our blood rise to boiling heat, not from the rays 
of the sun, but with a fierce accession of wrath at behold- 
ing the helpless, patient little calves lying close to the rail- 
fence, seeking what scant shade might be found, their sides 
panting, their tongues hanging out, not a particle of food 
or shelter or water within their reach from the rising to 
the setting of the sun ! 

Give the Florida calf a good pasture lot ; fence in a por- 
tion of your piney woodland, if you can do no better ; 
keep water and salt within reach ; give an occasional 
bucket of mixed bran and meal, some chopped-up sw'eet 
potatoes, raw, and an occasional feed of hay or fodder ; 
put up a rough shed that w ill turn water, surround it by 
a light railing, so that the calves may be shut in there and 
prevented from lying on the wet ground on rainy or cold 
nights, which are sure to come, especially toward fall, and 
rest assured that the Florida calf thus treated will aston- 
ish its owner by declining to die, or to do any thing else 
but grow up fat and healthy. 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — OLD STYLE. 241 

Just tiy it and see, you who have hitherto been content 
to follow in the worn-out grooves of the old-time settlers. 

An important step toward the attainment of this much- 
to-be-desired result — namely, the regeneration of the native 
stock — is, first of all, more gentle treatment than is usually 
given them. 

Many a time has our righteous indignation boiled and 
seethed and finally overflowed in a torrent, because of the 
brutal manner in which cows and calves are treated by the 
ignorant classes who, apart from questions of common 
humanity, do not know enough to recognize the fact that 
they are despoiling and depreciating their own property. 

And it is not only these ("the poor white trash"), of 
whom happily there are few in our beautiful State, or the 
naturally cruel negro, who thus w^antonly ill-treat animals. 
It is often done, or allowed to be done by dependents, 
from sheer carelessness. Many a cow and calf are beaten 
and driven and kicked, not once in a while only, but every 
night and morning, by those who are intrusted by the 
owner with their care. Perhaps, as the pens are usually 
at some little distance from the house, he may not know 
of the cruelty with which his cattle are treated, or he may 
suspect that " the darkies are a little rough," but does not 
take the trouble to verify his suspicions or make himself 
conversant with the amount of damage this ' ' little rough- 
ness" is doing to his property, to say nothing of the hu- 
manitarian aspect of the case. 

In either event — that of ignorance or mere suspicion — 
we can not hold the owner guiltless of wanton cruelty, for 
it is the clear duty of every stock-owner to see that his 
animals are well and kindly treated, and not left to the 
"tender mercies" of a race proverbially cruel to animals, 
and even to each other. 

We have elsewhere alluded to the necessity that often 

16 



242 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

exists of ricliDg out on horseback toward niglitfall to hunt 
up the cows that are apt to be dilatory in returning in due 
time to the pen. 

Just here begins the opportunity for the cruelty we have 
referred to ; in nine cases out of ten, unless it is the owner 
himself who goes forth to seek the '' bunch" (as a herd of 
cattle keeping together are called), the cows are driven 
home, not at the quiet, easy walk that is so necessary to 
the preservation of their milking qualities, but with a 
horse trotting fast behind them, a dog oftentimes barking 
and biting at their heels, a voice shouting at its utmost, 
and a long-lashed Avhip cutting and slashing across the 
backs of any that may drop behind the frightened, flurried, 
galloping herd. 

Thus they come rushing into the pen, heated, panting, 
their heads drooping, their eyes staring with affright, the 
foam dripping from their mouths — altogether as dejected 
and weary a lot of cows as the most cruel heart could de- 
sire to see. 

And then comes the milking and further opportunities 
for brutality, and this time the calf is a victim as Avell as 
the cow. If the two are separated, by the cow being 
driven back to the outer pen after the milk has been 
drawn down, the process is accompanied by kicks and 
blows to hurry the cow and keep back the calf. 

If it is considered, as it usually is, too much trouble to 
separate them, then, after the milk has come down, the 
milker being provided with a stick, reaches under the cow, 
and if the hungry calf, that sees itself being deprived of 
its supper, ventures to come Avithin reach it is saluted with 
heavy blows across its head and legs, till bruised, and oft- 
times bleeding, it limps away. 

Then if the cow-, stung by a fly, dares to use the weapon 
the Creator has given it to protect itself against its insect 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — OLD STYLE. 



243 



enemies — its tail— and the latter interferes in the least with 
the milker's comfort, it is greeted with a blow or kick ; or 
if — because a sore teat is roughl}^ handled, or a fly bites, or 
a sudden movement or shout startles its already overstrung 
nerves — it lifts its leg to free itself from its tormentor, an- 
other kick or bloAv, often on the sensitive bone of the leg, 
is the result. 

Again, when a young cow fresh from two or three years 
freedom in the open range is to be " broken" for milking, 
how is it done, only too often ? Not by kindly treatment 
and gentle persistence. No, but by driving it into a cor- 
ner of the pen, lassoing its head and unmercifully lashing it 
with the cruel " cow-whip" until it is exhausted and stands 
or lies down in helpless misery. 

We have watched closely, and regret to say that there 
is all too much of this sort of cruelty being practiced, 
even where it is unsuspected by the owners of the nnfor- 
tunate cattle, whose interest and duty should combine to 
render such an abuse of his property impossible. 

How can such things be? Why, certainly, only by 
criminal negligence on the part of those who leave their 
stock at the mercy of dependents. 

If the owner is not able to attend to the wants of his 
cattle in person, let at least his presence at odd times and 
seasons in the pen or field act as a check, and let it be un- 
derstood that the man, woman or child, who is proven to 
have ill-used the animals under their care will be discharged 
on the spot. 

Not till the present usual manner of treating the Flor- 
ida cow is totally changed can there be any decided im- 
provement in the race. It is this loud shouting, driving 
and beating that makes them, as they often are, half wild 
and intractable. 

Wherever it is possible the owner should overlook in 



244 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

person all work wherein the comfort of his cattle is con- 
cerned, and if those who are now resting in the self-satisfied 
belief that their own individual herds are receiving proper 
treatment will but take the trouble to "make assurance 
doubly sure," they will, in the majority of cases, be sur- 
prised at the revelations awaiting them. 

Among our own cows is one that, when purchased, we 
were told we could not milk, because the wife of the seller, 
though used to cows all her life, was afraid to do so unless 
her husband stood by with a whip in his hand, ready to 
punish the cow for kicking. But we liked the looks of 
the animal, a young one with her second calf, and had some 
confidence in our newly acquired milking accomplishments, 
chief among which we counted the banishment of clubs, 
whips, and loud voices. 

Well, that cow kicked us pretty regularly for the first 
few days, and we did not kick back ; we bewildered her 
by patting her, speaking gently, and quietly persevering 
in our intention to milk her. After the first five days she 
thought better of the kicking business and decided to re- 
sign in faA^or of her less kindly treated relatives. She 
never kicked again. 

In one week she allowed us to stroke her head, and in 
another she ate from our hand and gradually permitted us* 
to " come up to the scratch," behind her ears. 

Then we invited the former owmer into the pen, and the 
cow shrank into a corner the moment she saw him. He 
retired further off, and she then allowed herself to be milked 
as usual, never lifting her once too "jerky" leg, although 
her calf nearly butted her off her balance. 

The latter too, wild and nervous when it first came into 
our pen, soon became so familiar as to pick our pockets of 
any tRing that might be fluttering therefrom, to take our 
straw hat off" our head and a piece out of the brim if we 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — OLD STYLE. 245 

were not on the alert, to chew up our jacket, to twist its 
tongue around our hair, and to take whatever advantage 
it could of our defenseless condition in the milking pen, 
when it was disengaged and we were not. 

Now this has been our own experience in two other 
cases, and therefore we speak whereof we knoAV ; gentle- 
ness in handling cow and calf will insure gentle animals 
and increase the yield of milk in the former ; few persons 
are aware how directly the latter is affected by rough treat- 
ment, "running the cows home," striking and exciting 
them. 

We have been thus particular in describing the old-style 
methods of milking and cow-penning, because it is a ques- 
tion of but a few years more before they will be, save in 
isolated localities, things of the past, to be remembered 
with wonder and amazement, but practiced no more. 

The old style still prevails, however, over the greater part 
of the State where the means and opportunity of improve- 
ment are yet in the near future. 



246 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

THE DAIRY QUESTION — THE COMING STYLE. 

One of the most important questions that Florida has to 
face in the near future is how to improve her cattle. 

The time when this was a matter of little importance 
has gone by, and the new and more intelligent class of set- 
tlers who are steadily flowing into the State, coming from 
older lands where they have been used to better things in 
the dairy line than they have found awaiting them in their 
new homes, wdll never be satisfied until they have tested 
what can be done in the way of improvement. 

We hear some of the old time fogies say, "Nothing." 

We beg leave to differ and say. Every thing. 

There is no reason in the world why Florida should not 
in due time stand forth as fine a cattle-raising State as one 
need desire. 

But to accomplish this end there is much to be done; 
and time, care, patience, and systematic perseverance are 
requisite to succeed. 

It is the common oj^tinion in the North, among those 
who are not well informed, that grass can not be raised in 
Florida ; and even in this very State itself we sometimes 
hear the same assertion. 

But never was a greater mistake made. 

Because all kinds of grass w^ill not grow equally well on 
all soils, and endure the vicissitudes of all climates, there 
is no reason to assert that no kinds of grasses can be found 
that will flourish on Florida soil and beneath the Florida 
sun. On the contrary, already the merits of many grasses 
have been tested, and with perfect satisfaction, not only in 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — THE COMING STYLE. 247 

cultivated fieldis for cured fodder, but also in the meadow 
as permanent pasture ; and the number of these food-sup- 
pliers is constantly on the increase. 

Those who make the above sweeping assertions are either 
wofully ignorant or maliciously slanderous toward a great 
State. 

No family who owns an acre or two of moderately-good 
land has any excuse for not having an abundance of milk 
and butter even in much maligned Florida, as we shall see 
by and by. 

A well-fed cow is one of the best friends a housekeeper 
can have, and no better investment could be found for the 
amount of money that will buy and keep one of these val- 
uable animals, for whose product there is a demand every 
hour of the day. Especially is this the case in the new 
Florida home, Avhere more often than not only the plain- 
est and most simple kinds of food can be procured, and 
where the milk, butter, and cheese furnished by the hum- 
ble cow are a mine of wealth to the perplexed wife and 
mother, in whose ears the daily cry of ' ' What shall we 
eat?" is ever ringing. 

Now, as we have seen, the native Florida cow gives but 
little milk when, as is usually the case, she is turned out 
during the day to pick up her own living as best she may. 
And so the lack in individuals is made up in numbers, and 
thus from four or five cows enough milk is procured to 
yield the family an ample supply. 

If we stop to think about it we will see a reason sufficient 
in itself to account for the small yield of milk from each 
cow, even apart from its degenerate state and the compar- 
atively small amount of food it obtains ; and this is the 
excessive amount of exercise it is compelled to take all 
day, and every day, to get even this modicum of "greens." 

Whence came the popular phrase, *'fat as an alderman," 



248 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

except from the well-knoAvn fact that sitting still all the 
day long and eating and drinking at pleasure, is very apt 
to make a man fat? 

It is not often that a person who is in the habit of taking 
constant exercise accumulates flesh ; he will become mus- 
cular but not stout. 

And it is just the same with animals. The Florida hog, 
roaming the wild woods for its living, is thin and scrawny ; 
the cow is not thin, but neither is she fat, like her more 
fortunate Northern sisters who have only to stand or lie 
still at pleasure, and eat, eat, eat, drink, drink, drink, day 
in and day out. 

In the one case the milk factory has to hunt up the ma- 
terial to manufacture, and meanwhile the works are run- 
ning on half time and power ; in the other an abundance 
of material is supplied and the engines in the milk factory 
have only to use up the raw material fed to them in suffi- 
cient quantities to keep them running at full speed. 

In the one instance there is a constant waste of time, 
power, and material, in the other they are all utilized to 
their fullest extent. 

In an agricultural paper not long ago we saw this very 
question ably discussed, and figures given to show the 
amount of food that went to make up the loss in bones 
and muscle, when cows were obliged to wander for miles 
after their daily food, as compared with cows well fed and 
kept in a stall or home pasture, and the difference was 
startling. 

We have always believed that one great reason for the 
paucity of milk yielded by the native Florida cow is the 
amount of exercise she is compelled to take each day, in 
the search for provender, and lately we have seen it proved 
that such is really the case. 

A neighbor took a common native cow and calf off *'the 



THE DAIKY QUESTION — THE COMING STYLE. 249 

range " Avhen she was giving only one pint of milk (in ad- 
dition to one j)int allowed the calf), and her yield of milk 
increased six -fold within two weeks, simply from being fed 
a mess of bran and corn-meal twice a day, with an arm- 
load of fodder now and then, and not being compelled to 
wander for miles in search of food. 

Who will say that this small amount of food was not a 
good investment ? 

And, moreover, it shows that a great deal can be done 
with our common native stock even in their present degen- 
erate condition. In fact it is to this stock, already accli- 
mated and used to *' roughing" it, that Florida must look 
for the basis of future improvement in the dairy. 

All Florida wants is to have her native stock brought 
back to where it was when the earliest settlers imported it 
from Europe ; and to attain this end each neighborhood 
needs only to secure a few pure Jersey, Guinea, Durham, 
and Ayreshire bulls. 

Then, in a few years, when the female descendants came 
to be milkers, a vast difference would be at once percep- 
tible. Kill off the males of the old stock, import those 
named above, as they have been proven to be especially 
adapted to Southern climates, provide food and pasture, 
and the dairy question is solved completely and satisfac- 
torily. 

There is more merit in the common cows of Florida 
than they get credit for ; they respond very quickly to a 
more generous supply of food than they usually receive ; 
and if this were steadily given and the improving elements 
above alluded to introduced among them, her people would 
be content and with reason. 

It is not to be denied, however, that it is not every one 
of these " curous critters," as at present constituted, that 
will permit itself to be well treated. Many Florida cows 



250 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

refuse to eat any thing whatever except the wild grasses 
on which they have grown up, and no amount of coaxing 
or imprisonment Avith such dainty food set before them as 
would delight the heart and fill the stomach of a properly 
educated cow will induce them to eat or drink. 

We know of one instance (among several) where a cow 
was penned up, and an abundance of corn-fodder, cow-pea 
vines, bran, corn-meal, turnips, potatoes, kitchen-slops — in 
short, every thing that could be thought of to tempt her 
— were laid at her feet, all in vain ; not a morsel would 
she touch, not a mouthful of water would she drink. 

"Greek met Greek;" the owner resolved to starve the 
cow into eating ; and the cow resolved to show that she 
had a mind of her own. So for five days the struggle 
went on ; and just as the owner, alarmed at the rapidly- 
departing flesh of his mulish animal, concluded to own 
himself vanquished, the cow settled the disputed question 
in a very emphatic manner. She leaped the fence, an un- 
usually high one, and was never more seen by her owner. 

But then again there are many Florida cows that eat as 
readily as their Northern sisters, and these are the ones to 
experiment upon ; the younger the cow, the more tractable 
she will prove to be in this respect. The old cows are like 
old people, they do not take kindly to new habits or ideas. 

Another point to be gained in the treatment of Florida 
cows is to teach them to yield their milk without the inter- 
vention of their calves. 

This will be a difficult matter for obvious reasons. While 
perseverance on the one side and obstinacy on the other are 
in progress, the cow may '*go dry," as holding back the 
milk, even for a few milkings, tends directly to this result. 

But when this catastrophe threatens, the calf should be 
hurried to the rescue, and, after milking its refractory 
parent, be again removed from sight. 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — THE COMING STYLE. 251 

The disposition to hold up the milk may, in most cases, 
be overcome by patience and gentleness, and feeding the 
cow while milking ; bathing the teats and udder with luke- 
warm water and gently handling them, will almost always 
induce her to "give down'' her milk, and once the habit 
is fixed it will never be forgotten. 

As to the calf, it should of course be allowed to be with 
its mother for the first tw^enty-four hours, as it is necessary 
to its welfare to draw the first milk ; but, after this period, 
it should be taken entirely out of sight and hearing of its 
mother. 

Of course success in this direction will not always be 
attainable ; but if a young cow be made the subject of the 
experiment, and especially if she is being fed so as to in- 
crease her flow of milk and render its retention beyond 
one day incompatible with her comfort, it will seldom fail ; 
and once this step is gained, the calf can be taught to 
drink milk from a pail for the first two weeks and then 
be fed on slops, potatoes, bran, corn-meal, or from two to 
four ounces (no more) of cotton-seed meal a day, mixed 
with the bran, until able to graze, and then the owner will 
no longer be obliged to share the milk, or be dependent on 
the life of the calf for any yield at all from its mother. 

The introduction of "blue blood" among the ill-used, 
degenerate Florida cows, is a far better method of improv- 
ing the ^tock than by the general importation of pure- 
blood cows. 

Again and again has this been tried, and with disaster 
in almost every instance. Sometimes out of a dozen or 
more fine stock, imported from Northern or Western 
States, not one has survived the change ; Jerseys, Devons, 
Ayreshires, Durhams, Holsteins, all have gone the same 
road. 

And yet, in spite of this ill-fortune, some of the younger 



252 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

stock was left, enough to form the nucleus of the home- 
bred pure-bloods that we find scattered here and there over 
the State, a delight to their owners, and a boon to the en- 
terprising settler who is wide awake enough to realize the 
advantage of procuring good stock already acclimated. 

Never go outside the State to purchase stock if you can 
possibly obtain it nearer home. 

The acclimation of animals is a more serious thing than 
most people are aware of. If a domestic animal is taken 
from a cold to a warm climate, or vice versa, it wdll almost 
invariably lose its appetite and its health, and literally 
pine to death. If it survives this ordeal, however, and 
regains its usual health, it is henceforth acclimated and 
has "crossed the Rubicon" so far as change of climate is 
concerned. 

One of the most noticeable immediate effects of the re- 
moval of cattle to a warmer climate than that they have 
been accustomed to is an accelerated pulse, a gain of from 
fifteen to thirty beats a minute ; in other w'ords, fever sets 
in, and always more seriously with adults than wdth young 
or half-grown cattle ; sometimes the latter are very slightly 
affected; occasionally, where proper treatment from the 
start has been given, they escape it entirely. 

'* What is proper treatment?" you ask. 

Provide sufficient and effective shelter from the sun ; do 
not allow the cattle to be -excited, or driven, except at a 
walk — and not even this w^hen it can be prevented. 

Do not feed them Indian corn, or any other heat-pro- 
ducing food. Do not turn them out in the open w^oods to 
graze : they can not bear the same treatment that is given 
to the inured native stock. Keep them under shelter, ex- 
cept perhaps in the early morning, or for an hour or two 
toward sundown. Horse-flies and ticks are sorely trying 
to the patience and flesh of even the native cattle. Have 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — THE COMING STYLE. 253 

a Stall for your thoroughbreds, with wire netting in the 
doors and windows. Never mind if you are laughed at : 
your poor cattle will bless and reward you. 

Kemember that the native grasses of Florida and other 
plant foods are different from those they have been accus- 
tomed to, and that they have this change to meet in addi- 
tion to that of the climate. 

Feed hay ad libitum; you can make it yourself from 
crab-grass, Bermuda, or other similar grasses; cured fod- 
der of any sort can also be used, if sweet and good ; bran 
also is good— any thing in fact that is not heat-producing. 

But still, even with constant care, the investment in im- 
ported stock is apt to be a great risk. A breeder of many 
years' experience assures us that, ' ' The most that can be 
hoped for, when animals are subjected to great climatic 
changes, is to keep them in sufficient health to bear off- 
spring, from which stock may finally be obtained, not only 
acclimated but naturalized." 

There are many who assert, and apparently with reason, 
that the chief trouble and risk in bringing cattle into this 
State from the West or North is, after all, not so much the 
simple question of acclimatization, since the Florida cli- 
mate is, during a large part of the year, quite cool enough 
to be bracing, and during the remainder scarcely as warm 
as the animals have been used to in the summer season in 
their old homes. 

These observers assign another cause for the trouble. 

It is a well-known fact that in Texas, and other Gulf- 
coast States, the cattle are subject to a fever, popularly 
known as the "Texas fever," and Florida is one of these 
States. The fever very rarely, Ave might say never, at- 
tacks an animal "to the manor born;" but bring in a 
stranger, and it is at once seized upon. Tlie older ones, 
as we have noted, do not often survive the ordeal, bijt the 



254 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

younger take it more liglitly ; like the measles or mumps, 
it is severe on the old folks, but smites gently the young. 

And, looking the matter carefully over, it seems to us 
that the change of climate, pure and simple, may indeed 
exert a less active influence than the germs of the famous 
''Texas fever," which lies waiting to seize the stranger, 
but passes by the native born in silent contempt. We see 
this action constantly occurring as concerns human beings, 
why not, then, with the four-footed animals also? 

This being so, it becomes doubly wise to obtain our im- 
proved stock within our own borders ; and it is, besides, 
simple justice to those who have had the nerve and perse- 
verance to invest in blooded cattle, bring them to a new 
country, and take the consequent losses and risks, in order 
to make the necessary start on the upward road of im- 
provement. 

It is only right that these men, the pioneers of the accli- 
mated, naturalized Jerseys and other full-blooded cattle, 
should reap the reward of their pluck and foresight, and 
be given the preference in the purchase of such stock by 
the Florida settler. 

As yet they are few and scattered, and so little known 
as breeders that we have been compelled to make inquiries 
far and wide all over the State in order to obtain the ad- 
dresses given at the end of this chapter for the convenience 
of our readers. 

But we have as yet said nothing regarding a breed of 
cattle which as yet is but little known, save in those local- 
ities where it first came into notice, the southern parts of 
Georgia. 

No one knows where the little " Guinea" cow came from 
originally, only that Colonel Stapler, of Lowndes County, 
Georgia, owned the first of them. 

We saw it stated once, by whose authority we do not 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — THE COMING STYLE. 255 

know, that tlie Guinea cattle were found early in the pres- 
ent century roaming wild on one of the numerous islands 
that fringe the Georgia and Carolina coasts, having escaped 
from a foreign vessel that was wrecked there. It is con- 
ceded that the Guinea more nearly resembles the famous 
little Brittany cow than any other known breed, and it is 
not a wild assumption to suppose that the aforesaid "for- 
eign vessel" hailed from those parts. 

How true this may be " deponent sayeth not." We are 
satisfied to know that the Guinea cattle (so named by the 
original owner, Colonel Stapler), are splendidly adapted to 
Florida in every respect — except, indeed, as beef cattle. 
Many consider them superior to all others. They are too 
small to find much favor with the butcher, even if their 
value and scarcity did not keep them out of his hands. 

The Guinea cow is a living illustration of the old adage, 
"The most valuable articles are done up in small pack- 
ages." Coming from a section of country so nearly allied 
to Florida that the change in climate and food is so slight 
as not to affect their health in the least, the little Guineas 
are the ne fjlus ultra of family cows for this State — "the 
poor man's cow." 

The Guinea asks for but little food in addition to the 
supply of grass it can pick up on the range, for in its 
Georgia home it has been accustomed to forage for itself, 
iust as do the common Florida cows. 

Some one describes the Guinea cow as " a yard high, a 
yard and a half long, and about a yard wide." 

Another ' ' some one " writes of her thus, in more tech- 
nical terms: " She is broad on the back, slim neck, small 
and delicate legs and feet, well filled up in fore and hind 
quarters, long for her height, which is just thirty-nine 
inches, and has an eye in which meekness and content, 
with gentleness, shines. She keeps fat where a common 



256 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Florida cow would starve, and gives about two gallons of 
milk of a high grade twice a day. This little cow might 
butcher about four hundred pounds net, and is undoubt- 
edly the most contented and gentle animal in Florida." 
Another writer says : ' ' Their bodies are scarcely a foot 
from the ground, and the udder is enormous. They are 
hardy and gentle, active browsers, and eat about half what 
is needed for an ordinary cow." And yet another says: 
"They are usually of a deep red color, always fat and gen- 
tle, with crumpled horns and broad escutcheon. They re- 
quire less food and give more milk than the ordinary cow, 
and are much hardier and more intelligent." 

After these verdicts from those who have had experience 
with the " little cow," it is scarcely necessary for us to add 
more in her favor. 

Little as the Guinea is yet known outside of certain 
limits, the demand is larger than the supply, a defect that 
it will take time to remedy. There is a good deal of diver- 
sity too among these Lilliputian cattle ; they vary in size 
and in color, and also in the shape of their horns ; some of 
the latter are slim and delicate, others are crumpled, while 
others are entirely missing. In color some individuals are 
red, some brown, some spotted. The prices asked for 
Guinea cows vary from forty to one hundred dollars, but 
the males are held at much lower figures. At the same 
time, valuable and desirable as the little Guinea is for 
family use, where the means for ample feeding can not be 
afforded, the Jersey, pure or graded, will still continue the 
most popular cow with those who are able to care for it 
properly, because the yield of milk and butter is greater, 
and where crossed with the common stock a larger animal 
for butchering is obtained. 

Stepping for a moment be3^ond the purely home-life view 
of Florida cattle, let us take a brief glance at an industry 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — THE COMING STYLE. 257 

which is destined to be more to Florida in the near future 
than it is now to Texas, " the great cattle State." In South 
Florida there are thousands of acres of the finest stock 
ranges, lands fit for little if any thing else, and certainly 
for nothing as profitable ; grazing lands well and always 
supplied Avith an abundance of water, ranges over which 
the AVestern stock-raisers go into ecstacies. Few persons 
are aware that in the wild southern counties of Florida 
there are "cattle kings" whose wealth can scarcely be 
counted, most certainly not by themselves. 

An amusing^ incident in this connection occurred recently. 
Two gentlemen, settlers in Sumter County, believing that 
they could purchase cows to better advantage in Brevard 
County than nearer home, went thither on horseback. 
Beaching their destination they began to look around for 
the desired cows ; in the course of their search they came 
upon a tumble-down hut where they were greeted by its 
master, the most ragged, unshaven, unshorn, and uncouth 
specimen of humanity they had ever encountered. 

" Want to buy cattle, does ye?" he said. " Well, how 
many neow? I've got a little bunch I might sell." 

Our friends looked doubtful ; surely this ragged individ- 
ual could not own as many as they wanted, and they did 
not care to purchase in driblets. 

" We want twenty good milch cows," they replied. 

"Hoot! Is that all? I'd sold ye a hundred or two, 
but I don't never trade for no less than that." 

And, as he persisted, our friends rode on, wrathfuUy 
muttering, " Such airs for a ragged wretch like that!" 

Subsequent inquiry, however, revealed the fact that the 
" ragged wretch" was the owner of at least fifty thousand 
head of cattle. "And all he knows what to do with his 
money is to buy bacon and corn-meal," exclaimed their 
informant. "Talk about the foreign missions, let the 

17 



258 HOME Llt^E IN FLORIDA. 

churches look to the heathen at home first. We want mis- 
sionaries here if any where on earth." 

No expensive shelter is needed for the stock. There are 
no losses from cold or starvation as there are every where 
else, and while the Western stockman feels elated if he 
loses no more than one third from severe weather alone, 
the Florida stockman, even with the prevailiDg crude 
methods, or, more correctly, no methods at all, seldom 
loses twenty per cent from all causes combined. And yet, 
in the far West, with all the disadvantages of cold, short 
feed, bitter storms, and frequent drouths to meet, the cattle 
men coin fortunes that count by the million of dollars. 

What then, should the Florida raiser, with none of these 
drawbacks to meet, not be able to do? Already several 
large ranches are preparing to answer that question. 

And it is not in South Florida alone that a large reve- 
nue is destined to flow into the State through her cattle 
ranches, her horses, sheep, and hogs. Northern and Mid- 
dle Florida, the whole State in fact, is a great natural stock 
country. Middle Florida, especially, presents the finest 
possibilities for the raising of stock, and it only needs the 
introduction of improved methods to make the entire north- 
ern section of Florida the rival of any section of the United 
States in the character of its stock. 

Already some of the middle counties are supplying Jack- 
sonville with butter of excellent quality, and near Talla- 
hassee, Leon County, the dairy interests have assumed 
such proportions that a creamery for the more satisfactory 
manufacture of butter is about to be started. Seventy-five 
per cent of all the Leon County cattle are grades of thor- 
oughbred stock. 

And now, before we turn from the subject of the coming 
style of the Florida cows, a few words with regard to how 
to treat them. 



THE DAIRY QUESTION — THE COMING STYLE. 259 

Bear in mind that the yield of a milker does not lie 
altogether in the breed, no matter how excellent the stock 
may be, nor how good the care and management it may re- 
ceive ; unless j^roperly handled at milking, all these will 
not avail for best results. 

A kind manner, a gentle voice, quiet, steady movements, 
a caressiug hand, regular times for milking and feeding, 
will go far toward making even a commou " scrub" cow a 
fairly good milker, and the pure bloods are even more sus- 
ceptible. 

We have already referred to the importance and wisdom 
of procuring Florida-bred blooded cattle, so far as is pos- 
sible. 

That this may be done to a greater extent than is gen- 
erally supposed, the following list of reliable breeders of 
pure bred stock, principally in Leon County, will prove, 
and we trust it may be a medium by which our readers 
will profit. 

For these addresses; we acknowledge our indebtedness 
to Mr. R. C. Long, of Tallahassee, one of Leon County's 
oldest and most respected citizens, now acting as a real 
estate agent for that section. 

Shrader Brothers, Waverly Stock Farm, three miles 
from Tallahassee ; herd of about forty Jerseys. Five years 
in business. 

C. J. F. Allen, Ethel Meadows Farm ; herd of sixty 
Jerseys. Three years in business. 

W. J. Vaison, Mount Airy Farm ; herd of thirty Jer- 
seys. Six years in business. 

Col. John Bradford, Bradfordville ; herd of eighty Jer- 
seys. This stock was first introduced from the Channel 
Islands in 1857, and has been carefully bred up to the 
standard ever since. 

Robert F. Bradford, Bradfordville ; herd of twenty-five 



260 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Jerseys, origiDally from above herd ; in present hands ten 
years. 

N. W. Eppse, Pine Hill Farm; herds of Jerseys and 
Durhams, about ten of each. In business ten years. 

Thomas J. Roberts, Roberts' Farm ; herd of one hun- 
dred Durhams. Twenty years in business. This is the 
finest herd of Durhams south of Lexington, Kentucky. 

Capt. Patrick Houston, Lakeland Stock Farm ; Dur- 
hams, Jerseys and Guernsies, two hundred and fifty in 
the herds. In business fifteen years. 



PASTURAGE. 261 

CHAPTER XVII. 

PASTURAGE. 

While it is not within the province of this present work 
to enter exhaustively into the question of a fodder-supply 
for the "family friend," whose value we have been consid- 
ering, we know that the new settler will need at once a 
few items of information in this direction ; hence the sub- 
ject of pasturage. A permanent " meadow-land" will not 
come amiss, as its prej)aration should be one of the first 
things attended to. 

The subject of pasture grasses for Florida is one that is 
just now exciting much attention, as its vast importance 
is coming to be understood and appreciated. 

Bermuda grass has probably been better proven in Flor- 
ida, at the present time, than any other, because it was 
literally one of the first in the field. This name of " Ber- 
muda" is not to be understood as signifying that the grass 
originally, or indeed ever, came from the island of Ber- 
muda. It is simply a corruption, and a very natural one 
too, of the name of its introducer into the United States. 
Some years ago a Captain Permudy sailed into the port 
of (we think) Charleston, hailing from Africa. Among 
other plants and seeds, he brought a few roots of the grass, 
which at first was known by his name ; but soon, as we 
have seen, was credited with that of '' Bermuda." 

Now, Bermuda grass never matures seed north of Flor- 
ida, and not abundantly even here, and consequently is 
propagated altogether by roots. * ' Pick up a sprig, throw 
it down, and in five years it will be all over your place, 
even if it falls on a rock," is what some people will say to 
the "anxious inquirer" as to how to plant Bermuda grass. 



262 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

We heard lately of a gentleman who followed this unique 
plan, only that he threw down his sprigs on the ground, 
instead of a rock, and made a little pen around the precious 
morsels to protect them from live-stock marauders till they 
should get a fair start. But the roots seemed in no hurry 
at all. They sauntered very slowly and deliberately across 
their little inclosure; and finally, after two years of pa- 
tient waiting, the outraged owner gathered in his crop of 
Bermuda grass, roots and tops, just filling a bushel basket. 
But he was one of the persevering kind that are sure to 
succeed sooner or later. He had, moreover, less faith in 
himself than he had in the grass. The first trial had been 
made on high, dry land. Now he set out his roots on the 
sides and bottom of a deep gully and on low, moist land. 
There, to his joy and somewhat to his surprise, the grass 
made more growth in two months than it had done in the 
two years before. 

The next season he set out a five-acre field with Bermu- 
da, putting down the sprigs, their joints well covered, two 
or three feet apart. In three years those detached patches 
had joined into one beautiful green meadow, where sheep, 
cows, and calves, were made happy and fat. 

And just here we have one of the great points of excel- 
lence of this valuable grass, namely, its adaptability to low, 
moist land, where most grasses will not thrive at all. So 
thoroughly at home, in fact, is the Bermuda in damp situ- 
ations, that it does not mind getting into the water any 
more than a duck. It may be placed in hollows subject 
to occasional overflow, without suffering the least detri- 
ment, after weeks or even months of enforced retirement 
beneath the waters. 

It grows well on " white-sand land," or the poorest clay, 
and is an incalculable boon to the owner of worn-out or 
washed-out lands. It will enrich them by its decaying 



PASTURAGE. 263 

roots and leaf-blades much faster than can be done by- 
turning under cow-peas or other green stuff, and at the 
same time yield abundance of forage or pasture for stock. 

"It is just impossible to get rid of it," say^ some of the 
never-to-be-satisfied individuals, of whom the world is full. 
Well, who wants to get rid of it ? Certainly not he who 
owns a cow or horse, or who desires a beautiful green lawn 
before his house. 

It is difficult to kill out once it has a fair start ; no doubt 
of that ; and therein lies one of its greatest claims to ex- 
cellence rather than the opposite. Its very persistence is 
so much the more in its favor, since it is to this quality 
that its exceeding value as a meadow-grass is due. Year 
after year it may be cropped by cattle and yet not suffer, 
while the majority of pastures are ruined by successive 
croppings. 

All that a Bermuda-grass hay-field asks for is an occa- 
sional top-dressing of stable manure, land-plaster, or com- 
mercial fertilizer ; and these it must have, since a grass of 
such vigorous growth, constantly cut and removed, will 
necessarily use up all the available plant-food within reach, 
and then, if more is not supplied, it can but suffer from 
starvation, just as a human being would do in like circum- 
stances. This, as w^e have said, is where the grass is cut as 
hay and taken off the field. But where cattle are turned 
upon it the case is different. A considerable amount of 
fertilizing material is deposited, and a great deal of the 
grass is left to die down and rot. All the attention that a 
Bermuda-grass pasture needs (unless set on very poor land, 
and then it will require a top-dressing every two or three 
years) is to plow it once in about four y^ears, to loosen up 
the mass of roots and prevent it from becoming sod-bound. 
Tall-growing weeds should be carefully cut down for the 
first year or two before going to seed in fields of Bermuda 



264 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

designed for hay-making. After that the grass will rocft 
out all weeds for itself. In pastures there are few weeds 
that the cattle may not be left to take care of. 

Bermuda grass will grow six to thirty inches high, ac- 
cording to the quality of the soil ; a well-filled tract, about 
twelve inches high, will yield over one ton of cured hay at 
each cutting per acre, and it can be cut two or three times 
a year. Which it may be — twice or three times a year — 
depends not only on the amount of food this vigorous grass 
can obtain, but also on the humidity or dryness of the 
season, for Bermuda is, as we have said, a great lover of 
water and can not long resist drouth ; here in truthr is its 
one fault ; but happily, so remarkable is the facility of our 
Florida soil for retaining moisture during the dryest sea- 
sons, that her pastures rarely indeed suffer from the effects 
of drouth ; but when they do, it is the Bermuda that shows 
its effects most quickly, though it recuperates as soon as 
the rains begin again. 

Bermuda grass, intended for hay, should be cut at the 
very first indication of the stems turning yellow^ and dead- 
looking at the base. If not cured at this period the next 
cutting will be injured, and, moreover, so far delayed that 
it may be lost entirely ; and, besides this, if the grass is 
allowed to become too old it becomes very tough, and is 
not only hard to cut but is less nutritious. It is very easily 
cured, and this is a great point in its favor. A few hours 
after cutting it may be raked up into windrows and then, 
a few hours later, placed in small cocks to complete the 
curing. The latter is not, of course, imperative ; the grass 
may be left in the windrows as one chooses, but if a rain 
comes on during the day and a half of curing, it will be 
less injured in the cock than in the windrows. 

We have often heard the inquiry, "How can we kill out 
coco or nut-grass from our fields ? " 



PASTURAGE. 265 

We reply, Plant Bermuda grass. 

There is no other kind of grass known that Bermuda 
will not kill out, excepting only broom-sedge, and that, we 
confess, gets the better of the more tender Bermuda roots ; 
but to eradicate any other objectionable tenant of the field, 
all one has to do is to plow said field, then chop up, pretty 
fine, sprigs of Bermuda roots and scatter them broadcast 
over the rough ground ; then run a harrow or cultivator 
to level it off — first one way then the other. Do this just 
after a good soaking rain, and then you can fold your 
hands and leave the Bermuda grass to "root out" your 
enemy, as it will surely do in time, leaving in its place as 
glorious a green pasture as one would need Avish to see. 

We have elsewhere alluded to the one fault that some 
people find with Bermuda grass — that "it can not be got 
rid of." Now, if any one is so foolish as to wish to get rid 
of such a treasure, it can be done. There are two ways 
of killing it; the one to plant among it, in close drills, 
those varieties of cow-peas which make the most foliage ; 
plow through these several times during the season, so as 
to tear up the grass and throw its roots under the pea-vines. 
All grasses love sunshine, and none more than Bermuda ; 
cast into the shade for any protracted length of time it 
will languish and die. Plowing it in September, and run- 
ning a harrow or cultivator over it two or three times dur- 
ing the winter mouths, will also destroy it. But when we 
hear any one talking about getting rid of Bermuda grass, 
be it where it may — whether in orange grove or field — we 
always think of those significant words regarding the folly 
of ' ' casting pearls before swine. " 

We are proud, ourself, of a beautiful lawn of Bermuda 
in front of and on every side of our dwelling. Pleasant 
to the eyes, pleasant to the feet, pleasant to horses to crop, 
to the cows and calves to eat as fodder, and we do not want 



266 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

to get rid of it, though it is creeping lovingly around the 
roots of our 23et orange trees. 

And this is what we have seen — we and others who have 
tried it — that wherever the Bermuda grass is thus allowed 
to play among the trees, the ground, in a year or two, as- 
sumes the rich dark tint given it by humus or decayed 
vegetable matter, and the trees make a correspondingly 
improved growth. It is as though a rich leaf-mold had 
been conveyed to such spots. 

So we say, long may the Bermuda flourish among our 
orange and lemon trees. The more of it, the better. We 
do not believe in ' ' killing the goose that lays the golden 

prro" " 

There has come (literally) into the field, of late, another 
grass that promises to win its way into public favor, and 
to stay there. 

This is the Means or 'Johnson grass, named, like- the cor- 
rupted Bermuda, from its introducers. In Georgia it is 
the "Means" grass, because Mr. Means first brought it 
prominently before the people ; in Alabama it is the "John- 
son" grass, for a similar reason ; and, after all, it is hardly 
a grass either, but a species of sorghum. 

Now, when any of this much and justly prized family 
appear in the world, they have a strong resemblance to 
their next of kin, corn — so much so that it is difficult to 
tell the one from the other. 

We heard of a case in point the other day, amusing to 
an outsider ; but the reverse, we suspect, to the unfortu- 
nate victim. 

A gentleman, owning a large field of Means or Johnson 
grass, decided to vary the programme, and had the grass 
plowed under and corn planted in its place. He raised a 
good crop, and the repeated plowings nearly destroyed the 
grass, which was part of his object. He planted corn the 



PASTURAGE. 267 

second time, and sent out his field hands, in due time, to 
hoe and thin out the corn to a stand. They worked indus- 
triously for several days before he went to view the result 
of their labor ; when lo ! he beheld his young corn almost 
entirely cut down and the Johnson grass — " its double" — 
flourishing in long, thrifty rows! 

Moral : Don't plant corn in Johnson grass (or sorghum) 
fields, or if you do, thin the corn out yourself. 

This grass matures seed readily, in this respect differing 
from the Bermuda, while, like the latter, it can also be 
propagated by roots. The ground should be ];)repared for 
its reception j ust as for any other grass, plowed thoroughly, 
pulverized by harrow or cultivator, and busEes and tall 
weeds kept down for a year or two. 

The seed should be sown broadcast, one bushel — weigh- 
ing twenty-eight pounds — to the acre, the land being har- 
rowed after the seed has been scattered. Early in the 
spring or late in the fall is the proper time to sow it, the 
latter having the preference. 

Johnson grass is a great grower, yet it impoverishes the 
land very little if any, deriving a large proportion of its 
sustenance from air and water. Of course its growth de- 
pends very much on the quality of the land ; on rich soil 
it can be cut oftener than on poor, as it springs up more 
rapidly; if the soil is deep, so much the better, for the 
roots penetrate to a depth of eighteen inches and are as 
famous foragers as the * ' bummers " of an army. 

Johnson grass can be cut four or five times in a season, 
if the latter is- favorable, for it, like the Bermuda, likes 
moisture, but not to the same extent ; it does not yield as 
much per acre as the Bermuda, but if the land is moder- 
ately good and the stand of grass w^hat it should be, nearly 
a ton of cured hay at a cutting will be the result. It grows 
from three to ten feet high, according to the quality of the 



268 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

land or tlic ainoimt of food given it, but should not be 
allowed to reach a greater height than the former, as then 
it is about going to head, and the leaves are tender and 
numerous. If left too long, both stem and leaf become 
fibrous and tough, and in this state the grass is not only 
difficult to cure, but stock decline to eat it, and thereby 
show their wisdom. 

The growth of this valuable grass is remarkably rapid, 
and in moist, w^arm weather, or on damp ground, it often 
makes a leap of fully an inch in one day. The seed, how- 
ever, is rather slow in maturing, requiring more than two 
months, sometimes nearly three, from the time the grass 
starts to grow. It is a heavy black seed, and unless allowed 
to ripen fully it is useless to plant it, as it wall not germin- 
ate ; hence the necessity of procuring the seed of Johnson 
grass from a reliable source. 

It is not as good a pasture grass as the Bermuda. It 
Avill not bear constant cropping or the trampling of stock. 
Carelessness in this respect will cause it, in the course of 
three or four years, to disappear entirely ; but, even then, 
plow the ground, wait a month or two, and lo ! there is the 
grass again as thrifty and thick as ever ! 

The roots of the Johnson grass do not spread much, and 
hence, unlike its rival, the Bermuda, it is easily kept with- 
in its allotted limits, providing, of course, it is cut at the 
proper time, which is a month before the seeds mature. 

Frequent cuttings during the summer and several plow^- 
ings during the w^inter will effectually destroy a meadow 
of Johnson grass. This plowing, too, is not as hard a 
thing to do as might be supposed, because of a peculiar 
habit the roots have of swelling out twice as large during 
the growing season as they are during the winter. This 
expansion has the effect of loosening the soil, so that the 
roots offer very little resistance to the plow. 



PASTURAGE. 269 

A field of Johnson grass needs to be re-seeded once in 
every five or six years, and this can easily be done by 
allowing small patches of the grass scattered over the 
meadow to go to seed. The latter, when fully ripe, may 
be either gathered and sowed broadcast, or left to drop 
w^here it may. 

It is a good plan for a pasture, to sow both Johnson and 
Bermuda together. The former will be thicker and finer, 
and the latter will grow faster than if set alone ; but, after 
a year or two, the pushing roots of the Bermuda will get 
the better of the others, and finally the Johnson (or Means) 
grass will retire from the field of battle until the war-cry 
of the plowshare, and the clash of the trace-chain shall 
summon it to the front again. 

The amount of nutrition in Johnson grass, properly 
cured, is almost but not quite on a par with that of Tim- 
othy or Bermuda, and all kinds of hay-eating stock are 
extremely fond of it. 

It is cured in the same manner as Bermuda, with the 
advantage of drying better in the windrows than the lat- 
ter, as it does not lie so close, exposing the grass to the air 
as much as possible and as little to the sun as may be. 
These are the main objects to be attained in curing hay. 
Too much sun is as hurtful as too little drying. 

When we add that this grass, unlike the Bermuda, will 
not endure being occasionally overflowed, much as it likes 
a reasonable degree of moisture, w^e have said all that is 
necessary regarding this particular grass, which is destined 
to take a significant part in the future welfare of Florida. 

Another most valuable grass, either for pasture or hay- 
making, is the Para grass, which, as the name implies, 
comes to us from Brazil. 

The seed of this grass does not mature in this climate, 
and therefore it is propagated by x'ootlets only. The rows 



270 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

should, on rich land, be not nearer than six feet apart, and 
the cuttings be set from three to four feet in the rows. 

Para grass is a splendid hay-producer, and even on poor 
land is very quick to cover the ground. It is extremely 
nutritious, and all kinds of stock are very fond of it. 

It can be made into a pasture, or lawn, simply by plant- 
ing broadcast, and, as in the former case, turning cattle in 
upon it. On the lawn, however, the scythe and mower 
must needs take the place of these animated clipping ma- 
chines. 

The best time for cutting is just as it manifests an incli- 
nation to go to seed, which attempt, as we have seen, will 
only prove ''love's labor lost." Para grass in Florida is 
never "seedy," though it always ''goes to grass." 

"Sweet Beggar's-Lice," or Indian clover (and we prefer 
the latter name as being less unpleasantly suggestive) is a 
plant of great value to the Southern farmer, and one that 
deserves to be better known than it is. 

For pasture, for forage, and for turning under as a fer- 
tilizer, it has no superior, if in truth it has an equal. 

Botanically the plant is termed Desmodium canesceris. 
It is leguminous, and yields a large amount of rather flat 
seeds of an oval-triangular shape, very oily, and tasting 
like that of the pea, whose leaves, by the way, those of 
this plant resemble. 

And just here we will caution our readers not to mistake 
for Indian clover that obnoxious weed, bearing a burr-like 
fruit or nut with hooked prickers, which in the North is 
usually known as "Beggar's Lice." We have met the lat- 
ter ourself many a time, and have retired from the field 
routed and blessing the weed for its numerous sharp-point- 
ed remarks, whose sting often abided with us for hours 
afterward. The ' ' Beggar's Lice " of Florida is of a far 
different character. It is tender and useful, not tough 



PASTURAGE. 271 

and noxious, and its seeds, though they do cling to one's 
clothing, cling lovingly, and do not wound one's feelings 
by stinging, pointed thrusts of a personal nature. Our 
*' Beggar's Lice " is a much more peaceful and reputable 
character than its Northern brother. 

It should be sown in drills, the seeds dropped quite close 
together, the rows just far enough apart (three feet) to ad- 
mit of the plow and cultivator ; if allowed to go to seed, 
it will come up the next season strong and thrifty, and, in 
fact, even if not so allowed, the roots, if left undisturbed, 
will send up a yearly growth. So it will be seen that In- 
dian clover, once planted, will go on reproducing itself if 
given the opportunity, without any further trouble on the 
part of its owner. It should be cut just as it is blooming, 
to seed; cured at this time, the hay is sweet, aromatic, 
bright, juicy, and very nutritious, the stems tender and 
succulent. In good soils Indian clover will grow to a 
height of eight or ten feet, throwing out long lateral 
branches ; but it will do well on very poor soils also, as it, 
like the cow-pea, draws largely for sustenance on the air, 
requiring but little food from the soil. Its analysis shows 
sixteen and a-half per cent, of albuminoids, and a large 
proportion of saccharine matter. All kinds of stock are 
extravagantly fond of this precious forage plant, whether 
fed to them green or cured, in pasture or in stall, and will 
turn to it in preference to oats, hay, corn, or pea-vines. 

Not long ago it was thought that Indian clover could 
only be used in a green state ; but this idea arose merely 
because the process of curing it was not understood, expe- 
rience having proved that it is really more easily cured 
and handled than pea-vines, or many kinds of grasses. It 
should be cut as early in the morning as possible and left 
spread on the ground for eight or ten hours only, then 
carried to the barn and stored, but never in large bulk ; 



272 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

if left too long in the sun the leaves will shatter and fall. 
Should the plants be large and heavy when cut, they will 
be the better for turning over at least once during the ten 
hours' exposure to the sun. 

Indian clover makes a splendid pasture, growing up as 
fast as eaten off by stock, and as food for a milch cow it 
has no superior — not only greatly increasing the quantity 
of milk, but also its richness. 

In many sections of Floiida this valuable plant is indige- 
nous and regarded as a weed ! We only wish the world 
was full of such "weeds." How little care and poverty 
there would be left in it! 



FLORIDA POULTRY. 273 

CHAPTER XVm. 

FLORIDA POULTRY. 

Just as all kinds of poultry will not do well in all local- 
ities North, just so they will not all do equally well in 
Florida, though nearly every variety tried faithfully thus 
far has met with more or less success. 

On first settling in our present Florida home, we trans- 
ported hither a portion of our "old home" stock — Hou- 
dans, Light Brahmas, Partridge Cochins. 

Of these the Cochins, who, as every one knows, have a 
bad habit of "running to fat" on small provocation, soon 
grew disgusted with the climate, or soi], or something — 
they never told which. Most likely it was the climate, for 
as a rule stout people don't like warm weather ; but, how- 
ever it was, the Cochins first refused to lay eggs, then grew 
melancholy, and then decided to lay — themselves down 
to die. 

That ended the Partridge Cochin era. And we have heard 
the same report from so many quarters that we must con- 
sider it a settled fact that their family do not approve of 
Florida as a residence ; most certainly we do not approve 
of their conduct while here, so the disgust is mutual. 

Of the Houdans, we brought a trio ; as fine and proud 
a crested knight as ever challenged another to a chicken- 
hearted combat, and two beautiful dames, with nodding 
plumes upon their dainty heads. We were proud of our 
Houdans, their black and white suits were so handsome 
and glossy, their eggs so large and white, and their flesh 
so firm and tender for the table. They were very graceful 
in their movements, so long as they confined themselves to 
a walk; but alas! when their greediness overcame their 

18 



274 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

dignity and they started at a " two-forty" rate for the hen 
commissary department, "great was the fall thereof." 

Did you ever see Houdans in a full trot? If so, you 
have laughed ; that long fifth toe of theirs, not so useful 
as the fifth wheel to a coach, is death to all grace and 
smoothness when in rapid motion ; one moment it catches 
in a wisp of grass, the next one toe overlaps the other, 
then both together clasp a twig, and so their unlucky own- 
ers' ' ' rapid transit " is effected by a series of leaps into the 
air to avoid summersaults which can not always be avoided. 

We have often felt sorry for our Houdan pets when we 
have seen them standing disconsolately alone, or else hop- 
ping about at a sore disadvantage because of a wrapping 
of string or moss, or tough grass, that had somehow got 
around those projecting toes and tied the two legs together. 
We have seen the toe almost cut off* by the pressure of a 
piece of string, or the leg sore and bleeding from the same 
cause. 

Once upon a time (not in Florida) we had a large quan- 
tity of young chicks, many of them Houdans. During a 
long, wet spell, they were kept housed in a large barn with 
a clay floor. After a few days we noticed that every Hou- 
dan chick seemed to be afflicted with St. Vitus's dance — 
the way they staggered, waddled, rolled, tumbled, and 
kicked, was marvelous. 

An examination showed that the little fifth toe, just 
touching the damp clay as they walked, had collected, 
little by little, a large, hard lump of the latter, in some 
cases enveloping the entire foot, in others only the offend- 
ing toe itself, but in all seriously affecting the well-being 
of the helpless little sufferers. The other chicks, with the 
regulation four toes, experienced no inconvenience at all 
from the clay. And so we can not but regard the fifth 
toe, which is one of the distinguishing marks of the Hou- 



FLORIDA rOULTRY. 275 

dan family, as sometimes a serious detriment to these val- 
uable fowls. 

If it were an evil beyond remedy we would pass it over, 
just as we all are compelled to do with insurmountable 
obstacles as we trudge along life's pathway ; but it is not. 
The objectionable toe may be cut off with scarcely any pain 
to the bird while it is very small, and if an antiseptic be 
employed, and the chick be kept in a perfectly clean coop 
for four or five days, the cut will heal without trouble and 
the patient be saved from many a "scrape" into which the 
fifth toe would be sure to lead it. 

From our trio of Houdans we set several nests (they 
themselves never set, as every one knows), and hatched 
out fifty or more fine, healthy chicks. These, and as many 
Brahmas, were as pretty a sight for a primitive Florida 
poultry-yard as one would wish to look upon. 

But — there was a but, you see! — we had just settled; 
were unable at once to fence in all our outlying woods, so 
that the picketed chicken-yard abutted on the open range 
which was haunted by a "bunch" of Florida's worst curse, 
razor-backs, which ever "go about seeking what they can 
devour," of most positive and serious detriment to ninety- 
nine people, of very little value to the hundredth, their 
owner. Thank Heaven ! their days are swiftly passing by ; 
and good thoroughbred hogs are taking their place. 

Well , these free rangers haunted the line of our chicken- 
yard fence, where our valuable chicks, with the well-known 
perversity of chicken nature (which, by the way, is won- 
derfully human), would push their way through to the 
uninviting, unknown country beyond. The result was that 
we noticed that our chicks were fast diminishing in num- 
ber ; but some time elapsed before, not being versed in the 
lawless ways of the freest and most perfectly protected 
of all Florida's citizens, we laid the disappearance to the 



276 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

true cause — and not then, until with our own eyes we saw 
a sow and four of her young ones calruly devouring at one 
time the same number of our chickens, which had strayed 
a few inches outside the fence. 

But what could we do? We dared not kill the maraud- 
ers ; they were of the most powerful family in the State. 
The laws were made for them, not for us. If we could not 
afford to have a fence built large enough to inclose several 
acres outside the chicken-yard fence proper, so as to insure 
our tender young pets from straying w^ithin the circle of 
their ugly jaws, then we must not keep chickens at all, but 
must do without their eggs, flesh, and guano, because a 
neighbor chose to own pigs. He did not keep them, be it 
observed ; the neighborhood did that ; he only killed and 
ate them, after other people's chickens, potatoes, corn, cab- 
bage, etc., had fattened them for him. 

So we were compelled to set aside other needed improve- 
ments and exnend a considerable sum to erect a fence to 
shut out the most free citizen of Florida from devouring 
our own property on our own land ; we dare not touch a 
hair of its long, lank body — that was sacred. 

But before that fence could be put up, and before all 
vulnerable points in it could be repaired, eighty out of our 
hundred chicks were gone — gone without redress. Every 
one of the little Houdans was among the missing, lost in a 
general massacre of the innocents ; but we knew where 
each little body was buried. 

More Houdan eggs were set, and, while they were in pro- 
cess of hatching, one of the two hens flew over the fence 
and fell a victim to the rage of the baffled slaughterer of 
the innocents. Then the other hen and the cock drooped 
and died without apparent cause, "i^t least," we thought, 
*' there are the two nests of Houdans to come," poor little 
''orphlings! " 



FLORIDA POULTRY. 277 

But alas ! for human auticipatious ! Just as the cheerful 
little " peet, peet," began to be heard beneath the pure 
white shells, a neighbor's dog raided the hatching-house, 
and of the 'Mast of their race" not one remained to tell 
the sad tale. 

But, for all that, we have since had ample opportunities 
to prove that Houdans are admirably adapted to Florida, 
and we rejoice to know this too, for among all the various 
breeds of poultry there is not one superior to the Houdan ; 
and in this judgment, based upon our own experience, we 
are fully corroborated by the National Poultry Company, 
a great English institution, who claim that the Houdan 
surpasses all the other varieties with which they have ex- 
perimented. 

It is of French origin, and sprung from a cross between 
the Dorking and White Poland strains. It is from the 
Dorking side of the family that it gains the fifth toe, and, 
characteristic with it, it also gains the deep, compact body, 
short legs, and small bones of the latter, with the improve- 
ment of much less waste or offal in proportion to its weight. 
This latter is greater than that of any other French breed, 
the hens sometimes weighing ten pounds, though this is not 
very common ; from seven to eight pounds is the average. 
Its plumage is black and white, its head is surmounted 
by a fine Polish crest of feathers, and the w^attles are pend- 
ent and well formed ; as to the comb, possessed by both 
cock and hen, but in a far greater degree by the former, it 
is the oddest of all varieties, resembling more than any 
thing else the two leaves of a book opened, with a long, 
slender straAvberry in the center ; this comb in the hen is 
distinct but small. 

Some of the good points of the Houdan have already 
been referred to — the deep, compact body, short legs, and 
small wastage when prepared for the table ; these qualities 



278 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

it inherits from its ancestors, the Dorking, but it matures 
eai'lier than the latter ; its flesh is even finer, which is say- 
ing a great deal, and it is more hardy. Another point of 
improvement over the Dorking, and a very important one, 
as all poultry fanciers know, is that Houdan eggs almost 
invariably hatch, and hatch strong, healthy chicks too. 

The chickens feather very rapidly and early, yet are not 
weakened by this rapid progress, and are more hardy than 
any other chicks except the Bramahs. 

They mature very early too, it not unfrequently hap- 
pening that the young pullet lays her first egg when only 
five or six months old — and what a time not only she but 
her whole family make over the happy event ; never was 
egg so beautiful as this laid so proudly in the nest by the 
young aspirant. 

And certainly the Houdan eggs are beauties, as eggs go ; 
so large and heavy and white ; eight to the pound is the 
rule given for the eggs of this aristocratic family, but, like 
other aristocrats, they frequently scorn all rules ; not once 
or twice, but many times in our Northern poultry-yard 
did we gather Houdan eggs, of wdiich six, five, or even 
four only, were required to make a pound in weight. 

These giant eggs are fine to eat, but bad to sell by the 
dozen as ordinary eggs, and very, very bad to set ; they 
will never hatch, and he who tries it will find it ' ' love's 
labor lost." 

The Houdan hen lays one hundred and fifty eggs per 
annum, a larger showing than any other varieties except 
Leghorns and Hamburgs, and even there the difference is 
more nominal than real, since the eggs of the two latter 
are lighter in weight. 

" Them dratted hens ! " we once heard an irate country- 
woman exclaim, '' they're wearin' my life out with breakin' 
*em of settin'; soon as I break up one, another is took with 



FLORIDA POULTRY. 279 

the settin' fever, and they keep me busy catchin' 'em, and 
puttin' 'em in coops ; I shut 'em up for a week, and then 
let 'em out, and they just go like a streak for the nest I 
took 'em from ! I put 'em under the pump, tie 'em to 
trees, talk to 'em, whip 'em ; it's all no use ; set they want 
to, and set they will, if it's on china eggs or stones, or 
nothin'; drat the critters !" There was a good deal of truth 
in the good woman's lament too, as every one knows who 
has had dealings with the i)oultry-yard. 

Setting hens, determined creatures that they are, are all 
very well when wanted, but very often one prefers more 
eggs laid and less time spent on the nest, especially if one 
has an incubator ; and this is one of the great advantages 
of having the bulk of one's flock composed of non-setters, 
among whom the Houdan ranks first. 

Another point in favor of the Houdan is the fact that 
they are much smaller eaters than any other breeds, accord- 
ing to their size. Later on we will give results of an ex- 
periment made to ascertain the greatest profit on the same 
number of fowls of different breeds, which proves the 
Houdan to rank first, very decidedly. 

Altogether, we do not fear making a mistake in recom- 
mending the Houdan to the special attention of the Florida 
farmer, since it will bear the climate well, and is certainly 
the most profitable breed for the farm in all respects. 

With us, and wherever we have heard of them in Florida, 
the verdict has also been uniformly in favor of the Bramahs. 
So far as appearances and actions went, our Bramahs, 
''transported for life" though they were, did not see any 
difference between their old home and their new. 

They strutted, cackled, crowed, laid eggs, hatched chick- 
ens, and brought the latter up in the way they should not 
go, just as they had always done, and so have they contin- 
ued to do up to the present day. 



280 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

In fact, so well have our Bramahs flourished in health, 
size, and "hen-fruit," that we can ask nothing better of 
them, considering that, as well as they behaved in their old 
home, they have behaved better in their new, especially in 
point of health. 

Too much can not be said in favor of the race of Bramahs, 
both "Light" and "Dark." Certain it is that, ever since this 
magnificent breed w^as introduced into the general poultry- 
yard, it has become more and more a favorite, and now is 
regarded every where as a settled stand-by, just as regular a 
thing in the ' ' yard " as bread is upon our tables. 

We do not need to describe the Bramahs here. Every 
one knows them by sight. 

As to their special points of excellence, however, we 
have somewhat to say. 

The chicks are hardy, and grow rapidly ; but there is 
one period of their existence — when they are casting off 
the beautiful fluffy coat in which they come into the world, 
and assuming instead the feathered garb of maturity — at 
this period of their existence, we say, they are very ridicu- 
lous-looking objects, and have provoked many a laugh at 
the expense of their long, bare necks, skinny bodies, and 
featherless tails and wings. 

But wait a little, and you will see what a proud, shapely 
swan will be evolved from our " ugly duck;" and a most 
beautiful swan it is too, according to the saying that 
"handsome is as handsome does." 

The pullets, as a rule, commence their life-work of lay- 
ing eggs at the " early age " of six months. Lewis Wright, 
the celebrated English fancier, tells us, in his " Practical 
Poultry Keeper," that ' ' they lay from thirty to forty eggs 
before they seek to hatch." Kow this may be very true, 
but our hens never did that way ; their setting propensities 
are rather obstreperous at times, and our good old country- 



FLORIDA POULTRY. 281 

woman's outburst of righteous indignation against "them 
dratted critters," comes often to mind. 

As simple producers of eggs the Bramahs have several 
superiors ; the eggs are large and fine, seven to the pound 
is the average, but they only lay from eighty to one hun- 
dred per annum, the number varying according to the shel- 
ter and food given ; this of the Light Bramahs, the Dark 
rarely lays over seventy eggs each year. 

It is in hardiness, size, and quality of flesh, that the 
Bramahs take such high rank. They mature early, and at 
two months old are frequently large enough to figure upon 
the table as that delicious morsel, a "spread eagle," weigh- 
ing at that period of their young lives from one and a 
half to two pounds. The full-grown cock should weigh 
from twelve to thirteen pounds, and the hen eight to nine 
pounds ; at six months old the cockerels should not weigh 
less than eight, nor the pullets less than six pounds. 

The Dark Bramahs are even heavier than the Light ; 
they are in fact, so Lewis Wright tells us, the heaviest 
of any known breed; for the full-grown cock, fourteen 
to fifteen pounds is not uncommon, and there is one cock 
on record, shown at an English poultry show, that ^^eighed 
no less than eighteen pounds ! 

This is true of the perfectly pure strain only, and the 
hens are as excellent as the cocks ; as winter layers no 
breed equals them, and they usually lay thirty eggs before 
desiring to set, and then what splendid mothers they make. 
The Light Bramah is very good, but the Dark is better 
still, in this respect. Did you ever see a proud, strutting 
hen marching along with her dear little fluflTy family twit- 
tering and chattering all around her, but, mayhap, some 
stopping or straying aside when they ' ' had n't orter ? " 

Did you ever see the proud mother, in that case, stop 
and turn back to collect the little runaways ? 



282 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

No, you never did, unless they cried out in some real or 
fancied distress, that is, not unless the hen has chanced to 
be a Dark Bramah ; for this best of all chicken mothers is 
the only one of her race who turns her head to look behind 
her as she promenades with her little ones ; no straggling 
does she allow to go unnoticed, however quiet the prodigals 
may be about it, nor however slyly they may get exactly 
behind their '' dear mamma," she has eyes in the back of 
her head, and they soon find out there is no hoodwinking 
her ; neither does a poor little wight get entangled in the 
weeds or grass, but that with beak and foot she manages 
to extricate it ; if they are attacked by a foe, hawk, pig, 
dog, or cat, she is bound to have her part in the fray, and 
generally comes off victorious ; nor, like the majority of 
good mothers in chickendom, does she persecute the fluffy 
ones of other mothers ; on the contrary, we have frequently 
known Bramah mothers, both Dark and Light, to adopt as 
their own chicks that had been deserted by their rightful 
mothers, knowing or making no difference between the 
strangers and their original brood. 

An amusing instance of this strong instinct of mother- 
hood in a Light Bramah hen came under our notice a few 
months ago. 

A hen determined to set — they always are very deter- 
mined, you know — had been shut up in a coop by herself 
to compel her to a change of ideas. 

She was very indignant, as we all are when forced to 
give up our own will, and after scolding and pouting she 
put her head to one side, and looking out through her 
prison bars — the said prison standing in the nursery-yard — 
she gazed upon the multitude of young chickens around 
her, and thought a thought original with herself: ''They 
won't let me set ; very well then, I'll have a family without 
setting-^so much the better for me ! " 



FLORIDA POULTRY. 283 

So she clucked and clucked, and coaxed, until she had 
gathered around her, inside the coop, as many chickens as 
it would hold, from the downy balls on legs, recently 
hatched, to the largest that could squeeze through the bars 
to reach her. 

That was amusing enough ; but at night when we went 
to close up the coop from nocturnal enemies, it was still 
more comical to see five coops each occupied by an angry, 
ruffled hen, not a single chicken of their respective broods 
having remained faithful to them, but all having deserted 
to the stranger-mother who had literally ' ' taken them in ! " 

Her coop ! the floor of it could not be seen for the num- 
ber of squatting, contented chickens of all sizes that had 
been unable to push beneath the abductor of the innocents, 
whose broad white wings were spread out upon each side 
almost horizontal with her back ; little feet and little heads 
with bright, inquiring eyes, peeped out from beneath her 
soft white feathers, and two wee ones had clambered upon 
her back, and cuddled down among the feathers of her 
neck. 

It was one of the most touching and most curious sights 
we ever saw, all the more so that we knew, though she did 
not, that this motherly hen, forbidden a family of her own, 
had been condemned to death. 

Unwittingly she had saved her own life. The will to 
sacrifice her was gone ; instead, she was set at liberty, and 
offered a nest of eggs, which she scornfully refused. Why 
indeed, should she set patiently for three weeks in one spot, 
when she could, by simply clucking, gather around her 
*'a large and interesting family of small children?" For 
that nondescript family, from the largest to the smallest, 
was not a temporary case of adoption on either side. The 
chicks declined to return to their original mothers ; and so 
at last these much injured and wrathful individuals were 



284 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

removed to the main quarters to console themselves as best 
they might for the unnatural conduct of their children. 

And now, about Leghorns, of whose adaptability to 
Florida we can speak very favorably. The Leghorns, 
both white, brown, Dominique, and black, are excellent 
chickens, especially if the chief object desired is the great- 
est quantity of fair-sized eggs. 

The white Leghorns, especially, are great layers, from 
one hundred and fifty to two hundred eggs per annum be- 
ing their allotted number, nine being required to make a 
pound. 

The Leghorns mature early, usually in from four to five 
months ; not having so far to go in size and v/eight, as the 
Bramahs or Houdans, they naturally finish their growing 
journey a little earlier. 

Hamburgs, Polish, and Black Spanish are good layers; 
but the chicks are delicate, and their points of excellence 
are so fully equaled by the other breeds named, that have 
likewise superior hardiness and size, that it does not pay to 
raise them for profit. 

A great deal has been said during the last few years of 
the comparatively new breed, Plymouth Rock, which is a 
cross between the old-fashioned Dominique and the Black 
Java, a breed now almost extinct in the United States ; it 
has the gray color of the Dominique Avith the single comb 
and yellow legs of the Java. 

The good points of the Plymouth Rocks are these : they 
are hardy, they are of good size, the cocks weighing from 
eight to nine pounds, the hens from five to eight pounds ; 
their flesh is short-grained, juicy, and tender. 

The hens are good setters, albeit happily they do not 
"take a notion" to set so frequently as many other breeds ; 
good mothers are they also, but not equal to the Bramahs ; 
of eggs they lay from one hundred to one hundred and 



FLORIDA POULTRY. 285 

twenty per annum, eight to the pound. They are moderate 
eaters in proportion to their size, and are accomplished 
foragers ; yet, where it is necessary to confine them in close 
quarters they are contented and do well. 

In point of attaining maturity, however, they have sev- 
eral superiors, and, taking the Plymouth Eock altogether, 
while it is undoubtedly a valuable bird for the poultry- 
yard, we do not consider it as the very best breed for all 
purposes, nor do we believe that it will long hold its pres- 
ent place, which, by the way, is not so high as it was a few 
years ago. 

The Langshan is going to displace the Plymouth Rock 
as the fowl par excellence for all purposes, and justly so, 
as we will see. 

The Langshan, not having been very long a candidate 
for public favor, merits a " pen-picture" at our hands that 
it may be properly introduced to its future friends, the 
Florida farmers, to whose climate it is particularly adapted. 

Its plumage, then, is black, with a greenish luster, the 
comb is straight and of moderate size, the legs are slate or 
gray and well feathered ; both cocks and hens are proud 
and stately in walk and mien, as well they may be ; in size 
they closely resemble their kindred, the Bramahs. 

The Langshan lays early, feathers very rapidly, and is 
a strong, healthy bird. 

The hens are wonderful layers, especially in winter; 
those hatched in June will begin to lay in the latter part 
of December and will not cease until spring, when they 
desire to set, and their eggs are large and fine. 

But most remarkable of all is their value for the mar- 
ket or table. 

Take several broods of different varieties of chicks, 
among them the Plymouth Rocks, and the latter will ex- 
cel almost all of them in rapidity of growth, plumpness 



286 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

and shape. But place a brood of Plymouths in competi- 
tion with the Langshans, and they are — to use a phrase 
more expressive than elegant — ' ' nowhere ! " 

Two rivals, one claiming superiority for the Plymouths, 
the other for the Langshan chicks, not long ago decided to 
settle the matter by placing a brood of each kind together 
under precisely the same treatment. 

In three weeks the Plymouth Rock man gathered up his 
chickens under his wing and departed, saying, "Suppose 
we don't play any more ! " 

The Langshans had been hatched on May the 23d, and 
on July 3d, at six weeks old, they weighed two pounds, 
which was little less than marvelous. No wonder the 
Plymouth Rock man fled in dismay ! 

Langshans are not. as some suppose, identical with Black 
Cochins. Their plumage is similar, but that is all. The 
latter are poor layers, the chicks delicate, long-legged, and 
slow of growth. 

Very often a " cross" between two good breeds w^ill pro- 
duce a better bird for general purposes than any one pure 
breed. For instance, the progeny of Houdan and Bramah 
is a splendid bird, hardy, of quick growth, the hens fine 
layers, and setting occasionally. 

The Houdan and Langshan, the Leghorn and Bramah, 
or Plymouth Rock, the Langshan and Bramah, or the Leg- 
horn and Langshan, all these produce most valuable addi- 
tions to the poultry-yard. 

Some time ago a well-known fancier took ten pullets, six 
months old, of each of the breeds mentioned below, and, 
confining them, kept an exact account of the amount of 
feed they consumed, the eggs laid, and value of flesh pro- 
duced, for a given time, and here is the result : 

Bramahs — cost of feed $9.22, value of eggs $12.10, 
meat $14,00. Total value $26.00. Total profit $18.28. 



FLORIDA POULTRY. 287 

Cochins — cost of feed $10.15, value of eggs $11.80, 
meat $11.90. Total value $22.38. Total profit $14.38. 

Houdaus — cost of feed $7.35, value of eggs $15.66, 
meat $9.10. Total value $24.76. Total profit $19.81. 

Leghorns — cost of feed $5.77, value of eggs $16.14, 
meat $7.30. Total value $23.44. Total profit $17.97. 

Thus we see that the greatest profit on the investment 
is in favor of the Houdans, with the Leghorns next. Un- 
fortunately Langshans were not tested. Wyandottes are 
also most excellent fowls, and should be in every Florida 
poultry-yard. 

It takes all kinds of people to make up the world, and 
so does it take all kinds of fowl to make up a genuine 
poultry-yard. 

"Variety is the spice of life," and we want it in the 
Florida poultry-yard; turkeys, ducks, geese, let us have 
them all ; for " that way " profit " lies." 

Turkeys, as a rule, are not regarded as being very prof- 
itable, the enormous percentage of mortality among the 
young chicks eating up all the possible gains ; this, as Ave 
say, is the general rule, but there are enough exceptions 
to it in the few who succeed in raising almost every chick 
to prove that it need not be so with proper care. 

In our fair land of Florida, with its gloriously mild win- 
ters, the delicate turkey finds a congenial home, and will 
thrive with far less care and expense than in a more vig- 
orous climate. 

All who attempt to raise turkeys should bear in mind 
that during the first six weeks or two months of their lives 
the little "turks" are excessively delicate, and that the 
least wetting even from a slight shower is enough to damp 
the ardor of fully half the brood that may be exposed to 
it, and causes them to seek shelter beneath the sod. 

But if oue can manage to detain the young "turk§" 



288 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

under cover in the early morning, or during wet weather, 
until the red protuberances (which begin to appear when 
they are two months old) are fairly developed, and the 
cliick has become a poult, the delicate period will be safely 
tided over, and henceforth the poultry-yard can boast no 
fowl so hardy as the turkey. 

This matter of keeping them sheltered from dampness 
until at least two mouths old is one of the two great se- 
crets of success in rearing these valuable birds ; without 
it, there is no profit in them ; with it, there is much. 

The rearing of turkeys on a large scale to supply the 
Northern markets would prove a very profitable business 
in Florida, since here the only shelter needed would be a 
tight roof and four walls just high enough to prevent exit, 
with netted openings; no boarded floors or glazed sash- 
windows to keep out the cold and dampness, as at the 
North, but with only so simple a shelter as this, not a chick 
need be lost from exposure. 

The " Old Turk" should be allowed a harem of twelve 
hens ; the cocks at three years, and the hens at two, are 
in their prime and, unlike chickens, continue so for three 
or four years later, their offspring being fine, healthy 
chicks ; and, with regard to the latter, it should be borne 
in mind that the size of the hen is of more imi^ortance than 
that of the cock ; if he be of moderate size, strength, and 
spirit, that is enough to ask of him, except that he behave 
himself. 

And, do you know that he don't generally behave at all 
like a loving husband or father ? 

No, he is a grand old rascal, a regular dog-in-the-manger 
— a Tartar, a Turk. When he and his wives are roving 
the woods in a wild state, he makes it the business of his 
life to hunt out their nests and destroy both the eggs and 
chicks; and thus the poor hens are driven to sedulously 



FLORIDA POULTRY. 289 

conceal their eggs, and later on their ''large and interest- 
ing family of small children " from the wanton cruelty of 
their cannibal father. 

So you see there is naturally a good deal of the savage 
in the old turk, and the worst of it is that he does not 
always lose it by domestication, and, for that reason, it is 
as desirable to know the precise character borne by a cock 
before purchasing it as it is to inquire into the past of a 
new inmate in one's household. If he is of a peaceable 
disposition, kind to the chicks and setting hens, you are 
all right, but if the reverse, then ''look out for squalls!" 

The old turk's wife is very prudish and bashful when 
setting, and only those persons with whom she has become 
familiar should ever go near her at such times, since, in 
her agitation, she is more than likelv to break some of the 
eggs ; she is a very faithful setter, so much so that, unless 
she is daily removed from the nest, she will continue on it 
until she literally starves to death. Such a catastrophe is 
not uncommon where her peculiarity in this respect is not 
known or heeded. 

Certainly, both Mr. and Mrs. Turk have their " queeri- 
ties;" while, as we have just said, the latter will rarely 
leave the nest voluntarily, she frequently makes up her 
perverse mind that those who removed her may take her 
back again, if they wish her to go at all, for go she won't 
of her own accord ; consequently, her offended ladyship 
must be watched and, if needs be, forcibly invited to re- 
turn to her maternal duties after a recess of not more than 
twenty minutes. 

Two days before the little ones are due — in from twenty- 
six to twenty-nine days, not thirty-one, as often alleged — 
the hen should be bountifully fed, and the nest carefully 
cleaned during her absence, powdered lime sifted in the 
bottom, or insect pow^der among the straw; then, seeing 

19 



290 HOIVIE LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

that the hen returns in good time to her post, place an 
ample supply of food and water well within her reach from 
the nest, for she must on no account be disturbed again till 
all the chicks are out. 

For ten days before the latter are due the eggs should 
be sprinkled daily ; following these simple precautions, 
there will seldom fail to be a good hatching. 

The empty shells should be cleared away as fast as the 
chicks come out, but the latter must never be taken away 
from the mother, and never be forced to eat, as too many 
amateur turkey-raisers seem to think must be done, for it 
is not to be denied that the little turks are very stupid, 
so stupid as not to know how to eat, or to peck a,t the food 
offered them. 

A couple of chicken's eggs, put into the nest five or six 
days after Mrs. Turk begins to set, will solve the difficulty, 
for the little turks will speedily learn to imitate the peck- 
ing of the little chicks. 

Most turkey-raisers feed the young ones on oatmeal and 
bread-crumbs mixed with boiled nettles. This is a fatal 
mistake, and the second reason for the usual difficulty in 
rearing them. The little turks are for the first few weeks 
of their lives predisposed to diarrhea, and this tendency is 
encouraged by the oatmeal diet, hence disease and frequent 
deaths. 

For ten days feed nothing but hard-boiled eggs — thor- 
oughly hard — chopped fine, mixed only with minced dan- 
delions or nettles, if they can be obtained ; at the end of 
the ten days add bread-crumbs and barley-meal to the egg, 
gradually reducing the quantity of the latter until, at the 
end of three weeks, it may be discontinued altogether and 
boiled potatoes and small grain be substituted. Curds are 
also excellent feed, if squeezed very dry, not without ; 
water, pure, and plenty of it, should be placed within 



FLORIDA POULTRY. 



291 



easy reach in shallow dishes, so arranged as to insure the 
little ones from getting wet. At least twice a week add 
Douglass' Mixture to the water, about a teaspoonful to a 
pint of water. 

A close adherence to the easy rules here laid down will 
make the breeding of turkeys one of the safest as well as 
most profitable of the Florida farmer's many resources, 
bearing in mind this maxim, which applies, indeed, to all 
kinds of "live stock": 

''To attain great size, animal food and good feeding 
generally must be supplied from the first." 

'*A cross with the American wild birds," says an eminent 
authority, ''improves the stamina of the young turkeys, 
and, whenever possible, should be employed." 

Moral : First catch your wild turkey, then tame it and 
place it in your poultry-yard, and then " make a note on't." 

There are many who advocate the keeping of the Guinea 
fowl, alleging that it does an immense amount of good as 
an insect-destroyer, if given the free range of a garden or 
orchard. Well, doubtless that is true; but how about 
this same quarrelsome individual as a nipper of " fruit in 
the bud"? 

We notice that its most enthusiastic supporters do not 
care to have this question asked of them, after the blos- 
soms of their vegetables, melons, and low-hanging fruits 
have appeared on the scene — and vanished from it ; usually 
the marauder vanishes also about the same time. The 
remedy for this is easy : Keep them out of the garden 
until the plants are done blooming, then they will do good 
service. 

Guineas mate in pairs, and the hen lays about one hun- 
dred and thirty eggs per annum. They are very fine birds 
for the table. Moreover, the guinea-hen lays but three 
months in the year, and the majority of her eggs are lost, 



292 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

because she sedulously conceals her uest, and as often as it 
is found, and the eggs disturbed, will seek another. 

The young guineas are very delicate ; must be carefully 
and frequently fed, and kept out of showers and wet grass. 

But ducks ! We would have every one who has a river 
or lake near by, or even those who have not, to keep on 
hand a goodly supply of these fat, comfortable-looking 
birds, whose great value as garden assistants not every one 
knows, very few in fact. 

Give them a chance to help themselves to the slugs and 
worms that are the farmers' greatest foes, and see how 
quickly these pests will disappear ; but look out for your 
strawberries! Dearly do ducks love these delicious berries, 
and where they are the latter soon cease to be ; other fruits 
hang too high to be in much danger, and ducks do not 
scratch or do other damage to plants. 

Around our Florida lakelets, where tiny frogs and fish 
and water plants abound, ducks enjoy themselves to their 
utmost, and cost their owners very little, if any thing, for 
feed, since scraps that the more dainty chickens refuse 
they will eat almost invariably. 

When put up for fattening they should be allowed only 
a trough of water, and be fed on barley-meal, if it can be 
had, if not, on corn-meal. If celery or ''celery salt" can 
be obtained, it will impart a delicious flavor to the flesh, 
mixed with the feed. 

The drake does not approve of a large harem; three 
wives, or even two, are quite enough for him ; and these 
wives, being rather eccentric in the matter of the *'how, 
w^hen, and where " of laying their eggs, should be detained 
in the hen-house each morning until they have left their 
eggs there, being otherwise quite as likely as not to drop 
them in the water while swimming. They will soon learn 
to connect the detention and the eggs together, and thence- 



FLORIDA POULTRY. 293 

forth will waste do unnecessary time before giving " straw 
bail " for good behavior. 

Ducklings must not be permitted to get in the water, not 
even in their drinking - dishes, until two weeks old, and 
then not for over half an hour at a time, unless their 
feathers are well grown, otherwise they will die of cramp. 

The best breeds for profit are the Aylesbury, Rouen, 
Pekin, Muscovy, and the common duck. 

There is no reason why the goose should not do well in 
Florida, and yield a handsome profit, both as regards feath- 
ers and flesh. 

Three geese to one gander is the rule, if sturdy goslings 
are desired. Nests should be prepared especially for them, 
two feet six inches square, and one for each bird, since 
where a goose lays her first egg there will she continue to 
lay them thenceforth. 

The eggs should be set so as to hatch in cool weather, for 
warm weather does not agree with goslings at all ; from 
thirty to thirty-four days are required for the hatching. 
The goose, like the turkey, is a very steady setter, but 
should be made to leave the nest each day and take a bath. 
Be careful, too, to see that at all times a good supply of 
food and water is in reach, for, if neglected, the goose (who 
is no "goose" after all), will take care of herself by eat- 
ing her eggs one by one. 

The gander is not at all like the wicked old turk whose 
unfatherly conduct we have just noticed ; he is a very dif- 
ferent sort of fellow, and while his wives are on nest 
duty he need not be deprived of their society ; on the con- 
trary, they seem to delight in his presence, and he sits con- 
tentedly for hours by the nests, evidently taking a deep 
interest in the future hopes hidden away beneath their 
downy bosoms, and sometimes steps into the nest and care- 
fully covers the eggs while its proper occupant is feeding. 



294 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Do not disturb the goslings while hatching, and for two 
-weeks keep them under shelter, feeding them on boiled oat- 
meal and rice, with water from a pond, if possible, placed 
in a shallow dish, too shallow for them to swdm in. 

After they are fully fledged they may be left to shift for 
themselves, if they have a good range, only needing two 
small feeds of grain a day besides what they can j^ick up. 

Bantam chickens are so well known, the world over, 
that we need only call attention to their fine qualities as 
insect exterminators ; in the garden and orchard they are 
invaluable, and what little damage they may do is out of 
all proportion to the good they accomplish. 

We have previously noted the wisdom of procuring 
Florida-bred cattle, and those remarks apply also to poul- 
try — it is better to deal with home-breeders, w^isely, as well 
as being more just, to encourage " home industries." 

There are already several reliable establishments of pure- 
bred fowls in Florida. 

W. W. Fendrich, Post-office Box, 381, Jacksonville, 
has a large variety of feathered stock to offer the Florida 
settler — acclimated birds every one of them. Here are 
their names : no despicable collection, you see, for a new- 
country poultry-yard : 

"White Leghorns, Light Brahmas, 

Brown Leghorns, Wyundottes, 

Langshans, Bronze Turkeys, 

Imperial Pekin Ducks, White Guineas. 
Plymouth Rocks, 

Then down on the Manatee River we have another reli- 
able breeder in A. J. Adams, of Manatee. He has in stock 
almost every breed of poultry that can be named, of chick- 
ens, turkeys, and ducks ; also ''Booted White Cuban Car- 
rier Pigeons," and several breeds of hunting dogs. 



^FLORIDA POULTRTT. 295 

Another breeder, "honest and true," is E. W. Amsden, 
of Ormond, Volusia County. He makes a specialty of 
White, Silver, and Gold Wyandottes, White Leghorns, 
and Pekin Ducks. 

Other reliable breeders there are ; but of these we have 
personal knowledge, and while we name them here, " un- 
beknownst" to themselves, we feel that we shall be for- 
given. 



296 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

CHAPTER XIX. 

THE POULTRY -YARD. 

The possession of poultry necessitates a place to keep 
them in, unless indeed one chooses to allow them the run 
of the flower-beds and the house, and if so, then good-bye 
to neatness, beauty, and the refinements that should make 
the surroundings of a true home — farewell to flowers, and 
to all loAV-hanging fruits ; for, wdiile they agree only too 
well W'ith chickens, the latter do not agree with them, to 
judge by results, for they " wage w^ar to the death" upon 
them. And so we hold that no refined and sensible per- 
son will voluntarily allow poultry the free run of the house 
inclosure ; let them have their own premises, it wdll be bet- 
ter, far better, for both parties. 

Let us look first into the best plan for a permanent poul- 
try-yard and house, and afterward we will examine that 
other matter of portable fences and poultry-houses, which 
is attracting a good deal of attention in the ' * chicken- 
hearted w^orld" just now. 

Where merely a home supply of flesh and eggs is desired, 
with the opportunity for a small surj)lusage for sale, one 
yard only is needed ; for in this case all the adult chickens 
may be allow^ed to roam together. 

For a flock of fifty to sixty, a space of about one hun- 
dred feet square W'ill be enough, though it is ahvays best 
to have the poultry-yard as roomy as possible, unless the 
truck garden, house inclosure, and all forbidden grounds 
are closely fenced ; in this case, the poultry-yard may be 
dispensed with entirely, since the chickens and their kin- 
dred may be allowed to roam in the open w^ithout risk of 
damage to vegetation. 



THE POULTRY-YARD. 297 

But if there be a poultry-yard, it should inclose, if pos- 
sible, at least one corner of a lakelet where water will be 
always accessible to its denizens. This will not only save 
the labor of carrying water to the yard, no light task, es- 
pecially in warm weather; but the abundance of "small 
fry" to be found in the margin of the water, such as in- 
sects, small frogs, and fish, will make the chickens and 
other poultry happy and fat. 

Mulberry trees should be set here and there in every 
poultry-yard, not only because of the dense shade they 
furnish, a very important item though, but also because 
of the liberal supply of food they furnish without labor 
or expense on the part of the owner. The very best mul- 
berry for this purpose, though all are good, is the Hicks, 
which is described by P. J. Berkmans, our celebrated South- 
ern nurseryman, of the Fruitland jS^urseries at Augusta, 
Georgia, as " wonderfully prolific, fruit sweet, insipid, ex- 
cellent for poultry and hogs, fruit produced during four 
months of the year." 

Try planting a few of these valuable trees in the poul- 
try-yard, grouping two or three on the south and west sides 
of the hen-house, to shade the latter, and it will do you 
good to see the amount of enjoyment your feathered pets 
will obtain during those four months, when the plump, 
ripe berries, so cooling and healthful, are dropping at their 
feet, to be had for the picking ; they will need very little 
other feeding during these happy mulberry months. 

Whenever it is possible Bermuda, or some other turf- 
grass, should be started in the poultry-yard before it is in- 
habited ; grass will have no chance to take hold otherwise, 
and if the poultry range is divided into one or two sections, 
so that rye, oats, cow-peas, rice, or some other grain crop, 
may be grown there, and the chickens admitted or kejjt 
out at will, an immense amount of good will accrue to all 



298 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

interested. The pickets, or wires, should be set closely 
together, that the half-grown birds may not push their way 
through. 

As to the young chicks, fi-om the day they are hatched 
until they are fully two months old, and in some cases yet 
longer, they should be kept in a separate yard set apart 
especially for them and their mothers. 

Let the fence of the " nursery" be eight-foot pickets set 
on top of two ten-inch boards laid on edge horizontally, 
one above the other, half of the lower board being sunk 
into the ground ; either this, or else ten-foot pickets with- 
out the boards at the base, but with, instead, a strip of wire 
netting, two feet wide, nailed on at the bottom, its edge 
sunk a little below the surface of the ground. 

This bottom protection is very important, both to keep 
the little ones in and their four-footed foes out; for in 
Florida, as in all newly-settled countries, skunks and opos- 
sums go about literally ''seeking what they may devour," 
and sometimes foxes too come prowling around, for dearly 
do they love chickens, young or old. 

A fence of this description will do more than merely 
protect the chicks from their four-footed foes, it will save 
them from their most deadly enemy, the hawk, whose fell 
swoop is made not at night only, when it could be guarded 
against, but at all hours of the day, from sunrise to sunset ; 
and within this close fence, that will prevent the chicks 
from straggling outside, they can be protected effectually. 

When we first settled in our- Florida home, our young 
poultry shared the fate of those belonging to our neighbors ; 
they "soared heavenward on the wings of a" — hawk, whole 
broods often vanishing, one by one, till no more were left 
to appease the fowl appetite of the marauder. 

We had a small yard apart from the main one especially 
for the little chicks, to preserve them in the daily rush for 



THE POULTRY-YARB. 299 

food (when chickens show strong human tendencies !) ; and 
one day, after seeing a hawk pounce down before our very 
face into this little yard, carry off number thirty to our 
knowledge (and it might have been more) , one day — we 
repeat, after having had our feathers ruffled in this manner 
we bethought us of having read somewhere that birds, 
and especially haw^ks, would never descend below a line 
stretched across their downward path ; so we straightway 
put the idea into practice, running a few lines of ordinary 
twine back and forth over the nursery, just high enough 
to escape striking our head. 

We had not much faith in the remedy, for the disease 
was desperate ; but it is a remarkable fact that from that 
day, six years ago, to the present, we have never lost a 
single chick by hawks, except such as managed to stray 
outside their fortress, which was not properly closed at the 
base of the fencing. 

With an inclosure such as we have described, and wire 
or tarred twine, tarred to make it durable, drawn across it 
from the top of eight- or ten-foot poles, no chicks will be 
lost by hawks, skunks, opossums, or any other foes of 
poultrydom. 

A roomy shed, or shelter, placed in the center of the 
nursery, will afford shade and protection from rain, and 
here the coops should be placed, unless there are large 
trees here and there, or a Scuppernong grape canopy, to 
take the place of the less sightly shed. Place the coops 
near the outer edge of the latter, facing inward, a wide 
board being placed before each coop, with a narrow ledge 
running around it, like a shallow^ dish ; place the feed for 
the household on this, and there wdll be no dirt mixed with 
it, and none lost on the ground, for the ledge will prevent 
its being scattered off the board. Keep here also, at all 
times, a supply of cracked oyster-shells and bones; it is 



300 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

as necessai\v for little chicks as for adult fowls, though few 
are apparently aware of this fact. 

If you choose, you can supply your own cracked bones 
and oyster- shells, at very little if any expense, and, what 
is also an important item, have them always at hand. 

After the bones left from the table have been thrown 
out for the poultry to pick clean — and you may trust them 
to do their work well — gather them up and keep them 
where they will be dry. 

For our own use we prefer putting the bones in a drip- 
ping-pan and setting them in the oven till they are a light 
brown, not that it is necessary, but we believe that bones 
partially burned serve a double purpose— the poultry ob- 
tain the bone ingredients, and also a slight dose of animal 
charcoal, which is a splendid digestive medicine. 

When the bones are "done brown," we drop them into 
a little hand-mill that is a famous devourer of bones, dry 
or green, corn, oats, oyster-shells, cotton-seed, or, in fact, 
of any thing else that may need grinding, either fine, like 
meal, or coarse. 

Possessing one of these wonderful little workers, which 
cost but $5, or, with iron legs, $7, a family may provide 
its poultry with an abundance of the cracked bone and 
oyster-shells, so important, as every one knows, to their 
well-being. This, where so many of us live remote from 
commercial centers, is of itself a great thing. Besides, 
when cracked corn is wanted for little chickens, all one has 
to do is to drop the whole corn into the jaws of the Little 
Giant, a few turns of the wheel, and lo I it disgorges the 
grain, digested and in just the right shape for the hungry 
little ones. Is cotton-seed wanted for stock food or fertil- 
izers? drop in the seed and out it comes as fine a meal as 
you choose. Is corn-meal wanted for the table ? you have 
it at a few turns of the wrist. Crackers may be made into 



THE POULTRY-YARD. 301 

dust, stale bits of bread made ready for puddings ; in fact 
it soon becomes iudisi^eusable in the household. 

Not the least important of its work is in the grinding 
of bones for fertilizing purposes. Every scrap of bone 
not needed for the chickens should be added to the com- 
post heap, and the Little Giant will ''chaw" them up to 
order, fine or coarse. The truth is that the value of this 
little mill can hardly be overestimated, as every one who 
takes our advice and purchases one will at once acknowl- 
edge. There is a larger size, which is stronger, and grinds 
bones with still greater ease and rapidity; this costs $12, 
on iron legs $16. 

We have two of them ourself, one, the larger size, that 
is used for the poultry and stock, and the other for house- 
hold purjDOses, grinding coffee, rice, converting coarse 
sugar into pulverized, and a host of other things. 

We should feel utterly at sea without the hand-mill of 
Wilson Brothers, 43-45 Delaware Street, Easton, Penn- 
sylvania. 

Best of all coops is a triangular one, resting on, but not 
fastened to, a board bottom, projecting a little in front be- 
yond the coop, but allowing the coop to fit down over it at 
the sides and back, that heavy rains may be shed on the 
ground and not run inside. In the usual upright-wall 
coops the chicks are often trampled on by the hen ; but 
the triangular or peaked-roof style permits them to get 
away under the eaves in safety ; we have never lost one 
by trampling in a coop of this shape. 

And now, to go back to the main poultry-yard : we have 
seen how this should be inclosed ; first, as to the house. 
This, in Florida, is by no means the elaborate or expensive 
building it should and must be in more rigorous climates ; 
here are no ice or snow, or high, piei'cing winds to guard 
against. 



302 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

A plain building, suited in size to the number of fowls 
to be sheltered (twelve by twenty feet is ample for one 
hundred and fifty), is all that is needed; let the sides be 
made of pieces one inch by three, nailed on horizontally, 
a space of one or two inches being left between them, ex- 
cept half way up from the bottom on the north and west 
sides ; here let there be room to fit in temporarily, during 
the winter, the three-inch wide slats, " battens," so as to 
make the sides in these places solid, and shut out the win- 
ter winds. 

This will give ample ventilation, and yet keep all foes 
at bay, if the base-boards are close and the lower one sunk 

below the surface. 

A good many of the old Florida settlers say to new- 
comers, ''Don't put a tight roof on your hen-house; let 
the rain come through on the chickens when on the roosts, 
it will kill the lice." 

Pay no attention to such advice ; it is bad from begin- 
ning to end, and fatal to the health of the poor, helpless 
chickens, who are thus compelled to sleep (if sleep they 
can) with a heavy drip, drip, drip, of water on their heads, 
gradually soaking and chilling them, just when their sys- 
tems are most relaxed and they should be most carefully 
protected from wet and wind. No, no ! put a good, tight 
roof on your hen-house, and let it run well over the sides 
too, so that the heavy rains we are subject to in Florida 
can not drive far inside; and as to that idea of "killing 
the lice," in the first place, they "hadn't oughter" be 
there, and will not be, if proper care is taken ; and, in the 
second place, only boiling water will kill them ; and, even 
in this semi-tropical climate, it is very semi-occasionally 
that the rain comes down at this temperature; and, mean- 
time, the ordinary rain-water will kill chickens in long- 
continued doses. 



THE POULTRY-YARD. 303 

The house should be considerably longer than wide, and 
the perches run lengthwise in the center, both for conven- 
ience in passing around them, and to insure dryness to the 
fowls ; the middle perch should be the highest, and the 
others be so graduated that the little ones can reach them 
when they first begin to roost. 

Under these perches a sloping platform should be placed 
to catch the droppings, an important item, both for clean- 
liness and economy, since in this way all the valuable 
guano is saved. The platform should be scraped clean 
every day or two, and if each time a light sprinkling of 
land plaster be scattered over it, so much the better, it 
prevents the escape of the ammonia, and thus corrects the 
"chickeny smell," that is often more decided than pleasant. 

A door for entrance, and one or more traps, with drop- 
doors for the chicks to pass in and out, one into each divis- 
ion of the yard, if the yard be divided into ''grazing sec- 
tions," and then the house is complete, except the nests. 

These should be set on the floor, facing the wall in rows, 
two or three nests in one connected piece, with breaks left 
here and there in the rows for the hens to pass back and 
forth ; there need be only a narrow strip left between the 
nests and the wall, since, by making the tops movable on 
hinges, they can be raised from the outer side and free ac- 
cess to the nests obtained. 

Hens dearly love retirement and partial darkness, either 
when laying or setting, and if the nests are faced outward, 
or set on the floor without tops, like open boxes, they will 
scornfully turn their backs upon them and hunt out some 
quiet corner for themselves somewhere else. 

So much for the permanent yard and buildings. The 
nursery, by the way, should always be of this character. 

Movable fences are often very desirable to have, and 
form a splendid medium for fertilizing any particular spot 



304 



HO]VrE LIFE IN FLORIDA. 



or tree, without giving up a whole field or grove to the 
roving and meddlesome propensities of the flock. Mova- 
ble fences and movable houses for poultry are great things 
for our Florida groves, and we would strongly advocate 
their use; the more of them the better. A temporary 
poultry-yard, confining twenty or thirty chickens for one 
or two months in the year around an orange tree, would 
make a marked difterence in its growth and vigor ; try it, 
and see. 

It is easy enough to make the fence — when you know 
how — as easy as Columbus found it to stand an egg on 
end, and here is one way to do it : we shall speak of others 
further on : 




Procure pickets two inches wide, by half an inch thick, 
and six feet long; nail them to two rails, three inches 
square and twelve feet long; at each end of every rail, 
U-shaped pieces of stout hoop-iron (hogshead iron is best) 



THE POULTRY- YARD. 305 

are fastened by screws, so as to form staples, tliroiigh which 
posts seven feet long and two and a half inches in diame- 
ter, pointed at both ends, are thrust and set firmly in the 
ground. 

The rails in the alternate sections are at such distances 
apart, that while the tops of the pickets are in line, the 
staples at the ends — the U-shaped pieces of hoop — may not 
interfere with those of adjoining sections. 

Each post, when in position, has a brace upon the out- 
side, made by sawing in half one of the rails, beveling 
both ends of the two braces thus obtained, and fastening 
upon them at an obtuse angle staples like those on the rail ; 
set one of these braces up against one of the posts it is to 
strengthen, and you will see at once just how the sta^oles 
should incline ; one of them is to be slipped over the top 
of the post, and the other to rest on the ground with a peg 
driven through it, the top of the latter inclining away 
from the fence. Braces thus arranged will, as it is easy to 
see, hold the fence in position, no matter how the wind 
may blow, if only the peg is stout and well driven into the 
ground, the staple-loop over the post holding equally in 
any direction. 

Gates are made in the same way, only that they are 
hinged to stout posts, which are set up and braced in a 
similar manner. 

For movable poultry-houses there are several plans, and 
if none of these happen to suit in all respects, it is not a 
difficult thing for an intelligent mind to suggest, or an in- 
telligent hand to execute any necessary modifications. The 
main point is to have as light a structure as is consistent 
with strength and durability ; large size is not requisite 
when the object is only to provide safe shelter during the 
night and nests for the layers, and, in our genial Florida 
climate, this is all that need be thought of. 

20 



306 



HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 



We have spoken elsewhere of triangular coops for little 
chickens in the nursery. Now, this triangular shape is a 
good one also for a movable poultry-house in its simplest 
form. 

Of course, for this purpose it must be considerably larger 
than if designed merely for a hen and brood ; there is no 
need that it should stand higher, but its length should 
be proportionate to' the number of fowls to be housed. 




All of the material used should be as light as possible, with- 
out sacrificing strength. Quarter-inch boards, nailed to 
end-laths, three feet long and overlapping like weather- 
boarding, are best for the roof, which, of course, is in two 
pieces or sides. When these are put together by means of 
hooks or screws (the latter being preferred) one side should 
project at the top above the other to shed rain. 

It does not matter much at what angle the sides are 
joined to form the pitch-roof, so that height enough is left 
for the perches, which run from end to end, lengthwise, 
the nests being set on the ground against the ends. 

The triangular ends of this simple poultry-house are 
made either of battens nailed across, close enough to keep 
out skunks and opossums, or else of wire-cloth ; trap-doors, 
one at each end, that are closed at night, complete this 
little poultry-house, in which are combined lightness and 
strength, safety and ventilation, 



THE POULTRY- YARD. 



307 



A portion of the end-pieces should be solid, so that a 
couple of perch-poles, with ends projecting so as to be used 
as handles in moving the house, may be passed through 
holes made for the purpose. 

Access to the nests is gained by hinging the lower end- 
board so that it can be raised and the arm thrust inside. 

The house should always rest on a sound board bottom, 
as a guard against nocturnal enemies who otherwise would 
find no trouble in effecting a subterranean entrance. 

When there are two persons to handle such a house as 
this, one at each end, there will be no necessity for making 
it in sections ; it will be light enough to handle in one piece. 




Another form of portable poultry-house, much favored 
in England, is set upon wheels — small wheels, with broad 
tires — and moved by horse-power. 

This is an excellent plan, too, since the house may thus 
be made much larger and stronger, yet be transported with 
ease from point to point, together with its feathered occu- 
pants ; hinged shafts may be used for this pufpose or merely 
staples, to which ordinary plow-chains may be hooked. 

This "house on wheels" should be made strongly, but 
not of needlessly heavy materials ; a low frame-work with 



308 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

wire-clotli stretched over it to form the sides and ends, and 
broad, overlapping eaves, with perches well up toward the 
roof, to avoid all driving rains, would serve the purpose 
admirably in our mild Florida climate, with the proviso 
that one side, which should always face toward the north- 
west in winter and the southwest in summer, be lined with 
some sun-proof and wind-proof material, the former in sum- 
mer, the latter in winter. Quarter-inch boards, set sloping 
against the side, are good for this purpose, and also afford 
outside shelter during the day. 

Where several movable poultry-houses of this sort are 
desired, it is not necessary that each one should have its 
own set of wheels; one set will do the work, if placed on 
a platform, or truck, large enough to carry the poultry- 
house, which, in this case, must be provided with a sound 
board floor of its own ; the truck being low, it Avill not be 
difficult to slide the house on or off. 

Another kind of movable poultry-house is made of slat- 
ted or wire-cloth sides, joined by the same method employed 
for the movable fence already described (the post and sta- 
ple ends), the roof being like that of the triangular house. 
It is not our province here to enter in detail upon the 
proper care of poultry as regards food, cleanliness, and 
their sequence, health, or otherwise. We shall touch only 
briefly upon these points, leaving it to the numerous works 
devoted especially to this object to enlighten those Avho 
desire further information. 

One of the most important adjuncts to successful chick- 
en-raising is pure water. Very few realize the extent of 
the mischief done their fowls by allowing them to drink 
warm, dirty, or impure w^ater ; their drinking trough should 
be always in the shade and so arranged that they can only 
gain access to it for its legitimate purpose, not jump into 
it, or scratch dirt into its midst. 



THE POULTRY-YAKD. 309 

This object is easily attained by using a low, triangular 
trough, having a sloping roof over it, and wire-netting 
with meshes wide enough to admit a chicken's head, but 
no more, closing in the front and sides; let this trough 
stand on a grassy spot, or a clean board floor, then the 
fowls will always have clean, cool water ; wash the trough 
out every two or three days, and, if lined with zinc, it will 
be so much the easier to keep clean and pure. 

For the nursery a cheap and effective drinking-fountain 
may be made thus: Take a tomato, or similar can, from 
which the top, in emptying, has not been entirely cut out, 
but only bent in ; straighten out the ragged edges so as 
partially to close the can again, then cut a hole about the 
size of a lead pencil, a quarter of an inch from the jagged 
top ; fill the can with water, put a saucer on it, upside 
down, then quickly invert can and saucer together; the 
water will come out in the saucer until it reaches the level 
of the hole, and will always remain at this point until the 
can is emptied by the chickens drinking the water, which, 
thus protected, will keep pure and clean. 

When the mother hen begins to show a disposition to 
desert her little ones, let her coop be lifted into the main 
hen-house and placed against the wall, then, when she does 
leave them and goes upon the roosts, they will follow, and 
thus be easily and naturally taught to seek the perches at 
night ; if they don't, take their coop away. This is a more 
important matter than is generally realized, although every 
one who has raised chickens knows how much trouble and 
annoyance is caused by this desertion of a brood. 

The poor little chicks, worried by the absence of their 
one-time careful mother, and crying pitifully and vainly 
for her return, huddle together in a corner of their late 
happy home, shivering from the unaccustomed night ex- 
posure, pushing, crowding, crushing each other, one and 



310 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

all seeking the shelter of the center^ of the restless mass 
of lamenting chickendom ; and so they suffer until dark- 
ness and sleep overtake them, and thus they continue, if 
allowed, until the coop becomes too small for their rapidly 
growing bodies, until at last the slow instinct of their race 
bids them finally abandon the coop and seek a higher place. 
But, meantime, they have been crowding and sleeping in 
close quarters, insufficiently ventilated, until most likely 
some of them have died, some contracted weakness, and 
some become stunted in growth. 

All this can be avoided by the simple plan we have sug- 
gested. In every hen-house there should be some low, flat 
perches that the little ones can reach and roost upon with- 
out injury. And right here it is well to remark that nar- 
row, or small round perches are very injurious to chickens 
of all ages, being apt to produce curved breast-bones, to 
say nothing of the nightly discomfort to the birds them- 
selves. Perches for adult chickens should be two inches 
wide by one inch thick, the edges beveled, and the perch 
set with a very slight slope forward. 

The eggs in the nest of a setting hen should be sprinkled 
daily for eight days before the chicks are due ; if this is 
neglected, the membrane or lining of the shell is apt to be 
dry and tough, and then when the chick's "little bill," 
coming due, is presented, it meets with a protest, and the 
frail life goes at once into the court of bankruptcy, whence 
it issues nevermore* 

Keep the eggs moist by this method and the chicks will 
easily make their way out into the world, but never try to 
*'help them out" by breaking away bits of the shell and 
membrane ; leave Nature alone, unless the membrane seems 
inclined to stick to the little body, after the shell is peeled 
off, then moisten the stiff parts, but do not pull it away ; 
a drop of blood drawn is weakness or death to the chick. 



THE POULTRY- YARD. 311 

It is advisable to place the nests of setting liens (without 
board bottoms) on the ground ; but if this can not well be 
done, the nests should be made extra deep and well filled 
in with earth, packed to a concave shape and lined w^th 
short straw, occasionally dampened. 

Place the nests in rows and make the divisions between, 
not of solid boards as is usually done, but of w^ire-netting, 
open enough for the adjoining hens to make each other's 
acquaintance during the long period of incubation, and 
yet not so large as to allow them to interfere with each 
other's eggs. 

By pursuing this plan, and setting two adjoining hens 
at the same time, the broods will come off together, and 
the hens can be placed in one coop, where they will agree 
perfectly; and thus their owner saves time, trouble, and 
space, by being able to attend to two broods together. 



312 HOME LIFE IN FLOKIDA. 

CHAPTER XX. 

POULTRY PATIENTS. 

Florida's mild climate is especially adapted to the raising 
of fowls on a large scale with a view to profit both in eggs 
and flesh. 

The terrible diseases that so frequently rush rampant 
through so many Northern poultry-yards, dealing whole- 
sale death and destruction, are very rarely if ever met 
wdth on Florida soil. Nine tenths of these disorders are 
caused by exposure to inclement weather. Hence, there 
is no other State in our great Union so especially adapted 
to successful poultry-raising, since here the primary cause 
of numerous failures is totally unknown ; and that Florida 
will yet become the leading poultry-yard of the United 
States we do firmly believe. 

Florida chickens are subject to very few diseases ; and 
these, if proper care is taken, may almost invariably be 
avoided, or at least cured. The most prevalent and most 
fatal trouble that Florida chicken-" flesh is heir to," is here 
termed " sore-head," or "warts," though neither of these 
names is proper or distinctive. The fact is that the name 
" sore-head," or " warts," is no more the name of a disease 
than "sore toe," or "sore finger." And the disease they 
are intended to designate is, in Florida at all events, not 
one disease but several distinct ones. Thus, sore-head may 
mean that a chicken has distemper, catarrh, ulceration, or 
canker, which, in its worst stage, becomes that fatal dis- 
ease, roup. 

These several diseases are twin sisters. The one follow- 
ing the other as natural, progressive steps, and all proceed- 
ing from that most simple but fruitful source of disease in 



POULTRY PATIENTS. 313 

the human subject as well, "a common cold," only in the 
latter the various ramifications and consequences that pro- 
ceed from it are known and recognized, while in the poor, 
helpless fowl they are all classed (hereabouts) under one 
name, usually "sore-head," from beginning to end. The 
first stage of the trouble is properly termed distemper, or 
catarrh. It is a disease that chickens are heir to all over 
the world ; it is hard to tell always the why and wherefore 
of its appearance ; all we know is that it will come some- 
times, and that too in spite of ever}'- care and attention. 

The distemper usually seizes upon young chickens when 
they are shedding their " second chicken feathers," in their 
second or third month. As soon as one of the flock is seen 
to be quiet and listless, and disposed to remain on the perch 
in the day-time, its face and comb red, and a fullness or 
puff" under its eye, look to it, and at once ! Do not lose an 
hour before shutting it up in the hospital, that should be an 
adjunct to the poultry-yard, and commencing active treat- 
ment ; for while distemper is a disease that is light in itself, 
if left to take its own course it will usually result fatally. 

Listlessness and loss of appetite are the first symptoms ; 
the second day a slight froth appears in the corners of the 
eyes. When treatment is delayed until this froth appears 
the race with the destroyer is a close one ; and even, if the 
chicken eventually recovers, it is usually with the loss of 
one or both eyes ; in the latter case it must be killed or it 
will die of starvation. Watch closely, therefore, for the 
first symptoms we have noted, and as soon as discovered 
place the patient under the following 

TREATMENT FOR DISTEMPER. 

If taken before the froth in the eyes appears, wash the 
head and beak clean, and blow down through the nose into 
the throat, either with the mouth or a rubber nipple ; this 



314 HOME LIi"E IN FLORIDA. 

cleans the tear-tube. Then bathe the head and wash the 
throat inside (the latter with a feather stripped to near the 
point) with a solution of one part of carbolic acid to ten 
of water. Keep the bird in a quiet place, and give it noth- 
ing but water, no food. The third day give a little potato, 
bread-crumbs, or hard-boiled egg. The fourth day it should 
be in condition to be turned out into the yard again. 

When the froth has shown itself, or the head is much 
swollen, use the same treatment as above, with this addi- 
tion : thoroughly steam the head and throat, by using a 
large sponge and hot water, and give a dessertspoonful of 
castor oil ; use the carbolic wash at short intervals. 

CATARRH. 

This disease differs from distemper, inasmuch as a slight 
cold differs from a severe one. Its symptoms are a dis- 
charge from both eyes and nostrils, accompanied by a hic- 
cough or sneeze. 

Place the bird by itself in a sheltered place out of the 
sun and draughts; feed it only on soft, well-cooked food, 
seasoned heavily with red pepper and ginger, or licorice 
and black pepper, and put three drops of the mother tinct- 
ure of aconite to half a pint of the drinking-water ; renew 
the latter each day. 

This treatment, if the case is only catarrh, will be all 
that is necessary ; but if it is severe, then it is no longer 
catarrh, but 

CANKER OR ULCERATION. 

The first symptom of this trouble is a watery discharge 
from the eyes ; later the discharge assumes a firmer char- 
acter and emits an offensive odor ; the throat and tongue 
become studded with ulcers, and unless the disease is speed- 
ily conquered the bird dies of suflbcation. Use McDou- 
gall's Fluid Carbolate to wash the head and eyes, four parts 



POULTRY PATIENTS. 315 

of water to one of the carbolate ; swab the throat with the 
undiluted carbolate three or four times a day ; give soft 
food, with flour of sulphur mixed with it, and put a little 
of the latter w^ith the drinking-water. 

McDougall's Fluid Carbolate should be kept by every 
drug or general merchandise store ; it is a most valuable 
remedy, being a neutral solution of carbolate of lime and 
sulphate of magnesia, and entirely free from corrosive or 
irritating effects, yet combining all the most valuable prop- 
erties of both carbolic and sulphurous acids. 

If, however, this carbolate can not be obtained, there are 
other remedies to take its place. 

An ounce of chlorate of potash and an ounce of crushed 
sugar to a half pint of water should always be kept ready 
for use in every poultry-yard. The water only dissolves a 
certain proportion, and no more, of the salt, and it should 
always be made as strong as possible ; in other words, a 
"saturated solution." The sugar serves the double pur- 
pose of loosening the phlegm in the throat of the bird, and 
by disguising the saline taste of the chlorate makes it more 
easy to administer. 

Chlorate of potash, in the above proportions, is a splen- 
did remedy for the human throat as well as that of poul- 
try ; it removes canker and ulceration in the mouth and 
throat, cools and allays fever, and by its inward action 
destroys all traces of canker in the system, and thus ren- 
ders the cure a permanent one, in this being unlike merely 
local remedies. As long as any chlorate remains undis- 
solved in the bottle more water may be added, taking care 
that the proper proportion of sugar is kept up. 

To adult fowls give a teaspoonful of the solution three 
times a day, or oftener, if the case is severe, also swabbing 
the throat and mouth thoroughly with the same an equal 
number of times; and here it is well to observe, in swab- 



316 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

bing the mouth always take care to run the feather into 
the slit in the roof. An ounce of this solution to a pint 
of water makes an excellent remedy for common colds or 
distemper in young chicks. 

Yet another remedy, claimed to be infallible, not only 
for canker, but for its most virulent form — roup — is to 
place the affected birds in a close room, then take a shovel- 
ful of red-hot cinders and sprinkle on them a teaspoonful 
of flour of sulphur ; let the bird breathe the sulphurous- 
acid gas thus evolved for ten minutes. It will cause it to 
sneeze, and if the case is far advanced a great quantity 
of matter will be thrown up through the throat and nos- 
trils, and an almost immediate cure will result. 

This remedy is also successfully employed for catarrh in 
human beings, and for epizooty in horses, never failing of 
a cure after four or five applications. 

All of these diseases we have named proceed directly 
from exposure to cold, to rain, wdnd, and draughts; and, 
knowing this, that ''ounce of prevention " which " is worth 
a pound of cure" is easily obtained, as we have already 
pointed out, in the arrangement of our hen-houses. 

As we have said, all these diseases are often carelessly 
classed, by those who are unobservant, as "sore-head;" 
nine times out of ten, if you ask a Florida-raised neighbor 
who has sick chickens, "What is the matter with them?" 
he will answer, "Oh, sore-head, of course!" 

There is one distinct disease that deserves the name, 
since a sore head is its outward effect. But this trouble, 
popularly called in the South sore-head, or warts, is really 
nothing more nor less than genuine 

ERYSIPELAS. 

It is not often seen in the poultry-yards of the North, 
though when it does appear it is almost invariably toward 



POULTRY PATIENTS. 317 

the close of summer, and it is more prevalent in the ex- 
treme South because the warm season is there longer con- 
tinued; in other words, the superinducing cause of this 
disease is exposure — not to cold, but to heat. It rarely if 
ever attacks chickens over a year old, but prefers the young 
ones of one to three months old, who are "always on the 
go" out in the sun, and whose little frames have not yet be- 
come inured to exposure. It never attacks them in cold 
weather, and usually only during the summer, though some- 
times in early spring or fall, if the season is very warm. 

The first symptoms of "sore-head," or erysipelas, as it 
should be termed to avoid confusion, since erysipelas it is, 
and nothing else, is dullness and the appearance of small 
pimples about the head and face ; these increase and be- 
come pustules, which exude a serous fluid ; the head and 
eyes swell, the mouth, tongue and comb become covered 
with pustules, discharging an offensive matter. 

Now erysipelas, as every one knows, is an ugly disease, 
especially when it attacks the head ; if taken in time, how- 
ever, it can be usually conquered. Place the bird at once 
in a clean, sheltered coop, in as cool a place as possible ; 
administer a tablespoonful of castor oil each day until it 
begins to improve ; give green and soft food, mixing a tea- 
spoonful of flour of sulphur with the latter, daily, for a 
week or ten days, and let its drink be one part of Douglass' 
Mixture to two of water. Keep the sores moist with lard 
and sulphur, well rubbed in. If the sulphur seems to irri- 
tate, stop using it and substitute a neutral solution of car- 
bolate of lime and sulphate of magnesia. 

To the discovery of the true name, cause, and remedy of 
the so-called "sore-head," or "warts," the writer has devoted 
much time, study, and observation, and now, for the first 
time, throws open to the Florida public the result of sev- 
eral years of careful experiment. 



318 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

When we first settled in our adopted State, bringing 
with, or rather sending ahead of us a fine collection of 
Houdans and Light Bramahs, from a yard perfectly free 
from disease, we were considerably puzzled by the appear- 
ance in a few months of "sore-head." It was then August, 
and the flock had passed through the heat of May, June, 
and July in their new quarters, and it was among those 
hatched in May and June that the disease appeared. 

They had a roomy chicken-house, but the roof was not 
tight, we having, under protest, taken the advice of "old 
residenters" on that point. They had an ample run; but 
our new home was being carved out of the wilderness, 
pine trees were being felled, and shade was lacking ; the 
fowls ranged all day in the hot sun, then at night there 
frequently came heavy rains, and, owing to the open roof, 
the w^ater poured down on the backs of the poor, sleepy 
birds, drenching them to the skin. The rains, too, were 
more often than not accompanied by high, cool winds that 
blew across the unfortunate victims of a mistaken system. 

Do you see the causus belli? 

An overheating of the blood during the day, a sudden 
chilling at night — here surely is as plain and prolific a 
source of erysipelas as could be invented ! We do not need 
to look further for the as yet but little understood cause 
of the dreaded "sore-head." 

Here then, as we believe, is the source. The remedy is 
easy: Provide plenty of shade for your poultry; make 
shelters until trees have time to grow ; let the roofs of your 
hen-houses be water-tight, and so place the perches that the 
wind can not blow on the sleep-relaxed frames of the poor 
birds that are dependent on you for all their health and 
comfort. 

For two seasons "sore-head," or erysipelas, decimated 
our poultry -yard, and then, suspecting at last the true rea- 



POULTRY PATIENTS. 319 

son of the trouble, we protected the birds from dampness 
by a tight roof, a dense covering of clinging vines served 
to shut out a direct draught, and we made shelters of 
boards and tree-tops where the trees were not sufficiently 
grown to afford shade. 

Since that time we have not had a single case of ''sore- 
head," and very few, almost .none, even of a slight distem- 
per ; yet our flock is large, and there has been no other 
change in their treatment, except, indeed, that they are no 
longer fed any corn during the summer months. It is 
heating, and oats do better. 

We still hesitate to make the positive assertion that we 
have discovered the cause of this hitherto mysterious dis- 
ease ; but it certainly looks so, and we most earnestly urge 
upon all interested a patient trial of the same preventives ; 
then, by the result, it will be demonstrated whether our 
most fatal Florida chicken disease is, or is not, solely pro- 
duced by overheating and too sudden cooling of the blood. 

It is w^ell at all times to put in the drinking-fountain a 
dessertspoonful of Douglass' Mixture to a pint of water, 
at least twice a week ; oftener, if there be any disease 
among the chickens. There is no better tonic than this, 
both as a preventive and an active agent. It is made as 
follows : 

DOUGLASS' MIXTURE. 

Place one pound of sulphate of iron (copperas) and one 
ounce of sulphuric acid in a two-gallon jug, fill half full 
with hot water, let it stand twenty-four hours, and then 
fill up with water. 

This tonic is invaluable given to young chicks and to 
moulting adults ; it helps the latter through with an ex- 
hausting period, and hastens their return to the egg man- 
pfactory. 



320 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

CHAPTER XXI. 

FIRING THE WOODS. 

For many, many years our stately pine woods have been 
devastated annually by an element which is most truly 
said to be " a better servant than master." And no one 
who has once witnessed the fierce Florida fires roaring and 
rushing through the woods, sweeping every thing before 
them in their fiery onset, but can realize the full force of 
this saying. 

All over the State it is the custom to "fire the woods" 
early in the spring, so that the fine straw and old grass 
may be burned off, and new grass, the famous wire-grass, 
grow up, so that, forsooth, the roving stock may find 
plenty to eat without money and without price, so far as 
their owners are concerned. 

No matter how much a man may desire to preserve 
every blade of grass and every leaf that grows on his land 
so that it may decay and eventually enrich the soil, his 
neighbor has his cattle to provide for, and so the latter 
goes out, torch in hand, and sets fire to the grass, and 
burns it up, every blade of it, deliberately robbing the 
owner of the land of all the rich humus and fertilizing 
material that nature had manufactured for that purpose. 

''If," said a noted orange-grower, ''I was ofl^ered two 
tracts of land, side by side, one where the grass had been 
burned off* year after year, the other where it had been 
left to grow and to rot, and the one was oflTered at ten 
dollars per acre and the other at twenty, I would take the 
latter on the instant, because the diflference in the quality 
of the soil would be more than equal to the difference in 
cost." 



FIRING THE WOODS. 321 

And there are many intelligent land-owners in the State 
who will indorse this opinion and who endeavor, but in 
vain, to preserve for their soil the humus it so much needs. 
But year after year they see it destroyed for the benefit of 
those very cattle who also destroy their crops. There is 
no redress ; the law authorizes the theft of their best fer- 
tilizer, provided it is done according to certain prescribed 
rules. 

It is terribly hard upon the poor, patiently toiling set- 
tler. Let any one glance over the columns of the Florida 
country papers, during the months from January to April, 
and he will realize the pressing urgency of this matter. 
The reports of fences, houses, groves, even lives destroyed 
by these wholesale burnings v;ill reveal the true inwardness 
and culpability of a law which allows a practice so injuri- 
ous to our State and to the common sense of its lawgivers. 
It is a law that stands side by side with that which pro- 
tects the man wlio turns out his cattle and hogs to prey 
upon his neighbors' crops; they may have been just when 
they were enacted years ago, when Florida was little else 
than a vast grazing ground with houses and fields few and 
far between ; but times have changed, and such laws must, 
and speedily will be, changed. 

Like the old Florida cow and its management, the forest 
fires and the fencing out of your neighbors' roving stock 
will soon be among the traditions of the past, and hard- 
ships that the coming settler will not be obliged to face. 
They have endured too long, but their end is near. 

"What is the motive of those who thus fire the woods 
in the settlements?" you ask. 

To illustrate: A thickly-settled neighborhood, owning 
valuable fences and groves, resolved to make a cordon 
around the settlement and ''whip out" all approaching 
fires at a distance from their property. But they reckoned 

21 



322 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

without their host ; right in their midst dwelt the first 
comer in that region ; he declined to part from old cus- 
toms. "If the grass don't burn off around here the cows 
will be late comin' home at night, 'cause they'll have to 
wander to hunt fresh grass; and this here grass is goin' to 
be burnt, that's all about it ! " 

And so at sundown, one early spring day, fire began 
creeping out beyond the line of ploAved ground he had run 
around his own fences, and the whole settlement was com- 
pelled to rush to the rescue of its property, and, with 
hoes, rakes, axes, and the tops of young pine trees, fight 
fire till daylight, even thus losing hundreds of rails, which 
loss threw open groves and fields to the inroads of stock 
for several days. And these thrifty, intelligent citizens 
had no redress against this one ignorant one ! 

The law, as it stands at present, allows fire to be put out 
into the woods during the months of January, February, 
March, and April; but decrees that the person so firing 
the woods shall give one or more days' notice of his inten- 
tion to every one within one mile of his home. 

It is hardly needful to say that this latter clause is gen- 
erally disregarded ; true, the penalty is heavy, liability for 
payment of all the damage done. But what matters a 
penalty, when no one can prove who started the fire? 

Neighbor A. '"lows that old man B. did it." Old man 
B. "reckons that C. mou«:ht a done it." But no one 
knows, so no one suffers except the innocent. 

Even in the case we have just mentioned, while moral 

proof was strong, the act of firing was not seen, so there 

was no legal proof. 

Our law-makers should have interfered in these premises 

long ago ; but soon the people will settle it for themselves, 

for they are awakening to the injury these half-savage law§ 

inflict upon an agricultural community. 



FIRING THE WOODS, 323 

Shut up the cattle on their owuer's premises, and the 
temptation to destroy other people's property for their 
benefit will be removed. 

The opening of spring brings with it months of anxious 
watching, by night and by day; no one knows where or 
when the inflammable pine straw will be fired, nor by whom, 
far or near, and the only warning is the rapid approach of 
the fierce-roaring flames, bellowing like a hundred bulls, 
leaping like an army of demons rejoicing over the destruc- 
tion of all they may meet in their resistless rush, and even 
to the very lives of human beings! 

Only a few years ago a hapless family, driving through 
a dense hammock where a wide wagon-track had been cut 
from amidst the heavy underbrush, were overtaken by an 
onrushing wall of roaring flames ; they lashed their horses 
and fled onward ; there was no turning to the right or left, 
even had there been no fire to bar the way. Close behind 
them rushed the fierce fire demons, gloating over the prey, 
for whom, alas! there was no escape. Vainly was the 
whip applied to the afiinghted horses. Hammock roads 
are rough, full of palmetto roots, hills and hollows; and 
soon the poor beasts stumbled and fell ; then the family 
alighted and fled on foot, the father snatching up two little 
children, the mother clas23ing her babe to her breast, and 
still another child, a boy of eight years, followed after them 
in deadly fear. 

On came the flames with that horrible gloAv and that 
awful roar so fiimiliar, more 's the pity to the Florida set- 
tlers, and their pace was swifter than that of the wretclied 
human beings fleeing before them. Soon the little boy 
tripped and fell headlong into a tiny pool of liquid mud 
in the center of the road ; his forehead struck a root and 
he lay there unconscious as the flames swept by on either 
side, leaving him scorched and suflering, but alive, 



324 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Less fortunate were his parents. Burdened with the 
helpless little ones, the terrible flames caught them up and 
wrapped them all — father, mother, and three children — in 
their fiery arms ; and so all that was left of the six human 
beings and two horses, that only an hour before had en- 
tered on that fatal road, full of life and hope, was a mass 
of charred bones, and one little boy. 

And all this, not by any means a solitary instance, that 
a drove of cattle might be provided with a good supply of 
new, fresh grass ! 

Every fence outlying the open forest must, early in Jan- 
uary, be ''protected" by a line of ten or twelve consecu- 
tive furrows plowed entirely around it, and all tall grass 
or weeds, that might serve to carry fire across, carefully 
raked out. A still better plan is to plow another similar 
strip ten or fifteen feet, outside the first, and then burn 
ofi* all the trash and grass between the two ; this makes 
the safest possible bai-rier ; but still the fire does sometimes 
cross it, so that even when thus guarded it behooves one 
to watch closely or mischief may ensue. 

A fire may be met and conquered to all appearance, 
and yet several days thereafter it not unfrequently happens 
that, without a breath of warning, a thick, black cloud of 
smoke is seen, an angry roar of flames heard, and the set- 
tier rushes out to find his "protected" fence burning furi- 
ously almost at his door ; and no one can tell how it start- 
ed, except on the theory that some smoldering log has 
been fanned into a flame by the breeze and a spark wafted 
. across the line of furrows right into the dry grass along 
the fence. 

Another cause of the recurrence of fires deemed extin- 
guished is the tall pine trees, beneath whose bark the flames 
creep, creep, creep "out of sight, out of mind," till they 
burst out at the very top, and then, from a height of 



FIRING THE WOODS. 325 

seventy or eighty feet, sparks sail slowly away in the air, 
dropping into the grass here and there in places not yet 
burned over — often at a distance of a hundred or more 
feet from the point of departure. 

Wherever a fire has swept, the trees that stand within 
two hundred feet of grass uuburned should be closely ex- 
amined, and, if the slightest signs of internal or external 
fire can be detected, let them be cut down on the -instant, 
before they have the chance to do mischief, and mischief 
too that is of the worst sort, because unsuspected until 
under full headway. 

This has occurred in the writer's personal experience 
several times, and great damage done, just as it often hap- 
pens that when one is feeling most secure the enemy ap- 
pears in force upon the threshold * ' seeking what it may 
devour." 

It is no light task to ''fight fire," as we know to our 
cost. Many a time, during our Florida life, lack of help 
has compelled us to face the blinding smoke and scorching 
flames, armed with rake, hoe, and pine brush, with a threat- 
ened fence behind us at our very elbow, and the fierce 
flames leaping ten feet high on the other side of a narrow 
plowed strip, and often reaching out and almost spanning 
the barrier. 

No, it is no light thing to fight fire, rushing here and 
there to check its advance, fighting with breathless haste, 
aching arms, weeping eyes, and choking lungs, to keep the 
warring foe at bay. 

Many a time have the weak women of a household, dur- 
ing the absence of the stronger ones, been forced to rush 
out, drag down the heavy rails, so as to break the connec- 
tion, and fight and struggle for hours to save their hard 
won property from destruction, often failing partially, if 
not entirely, in spite of the toil that not unfrequently lays 
them upon a sick-bed. 



326 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

It is an every-day complaint, for three or four months 
every spring, that fences, trees, even houses, have been 
destroyed, and groves and fields thrown open to the rav- 
ages of the roving stock for whose benefit all this destruc- 
tion is wantonly caused. 

If it occurred only once in several years, that would be 
bad enough ; but to go through the same scenes of toil, 
loss, and anxiety every year is almost more than mortal 
can endure. 

'' Let us have peace." 



ALL ABOUT FENCES. 327 

CHAPTER XXII. 

ALL ABOUT FENCES. 

If there is one law more than another urgently required 
in Florida, at this present juncture, it is a law that shall 
compel each owner of cattle and those other "curous crit- 
ters," called in local parlance " razor-backs," to keep his 
property on his own lands, and not send them abroad to 
raid and pillage his neighbors' substance, ruin his temper 
and encourage profanity. 

Here is a reform in the Florida laws that is even more 
imperative if possible than that other we have looked into, 
the firing of the woods — and we refer to it now in detail, 
not so much that incoming settlers may see what is await- 
ing them, but rather that they may know what their pre- 
decessors have faced ; for the days of roving stock are 
numbered, as, like those of the fiorest incendiaries, both 
belong to the "ancient regime" now swiftly passing away, 
as the tide of immigration sweeps onward, bringing im- 
proved methods and more thrifty, provident habits in its 
train. 

These two laws have been Florida's most glaring draw- 
backs in the eyes of the industrious, common-sense settler; 
they are still alive though near dissolution, and in some 
sections already practically dead ; and the sooner the official 
death-seal is placed upon them, once and forever, the more 
rapid will be the advance of the whole State. 

We have seen how the firing of the forest works destruc- 
tion, now let us look into this fence matter for future tra- 
ditional reference. 

The past and present law allows stock to roam at will 
over the property of e\^ry man who can not afford to fence 



328 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

iu his possessions in such a manner as shall effectually pre- 
vent the leaping over by horses or cattle, or the creeping 
under by the other obnoxious class of rovers. 

That the law should actually decree that the property 
of one man worth, say twenty dollars, shall be free to de- 
stroy and raid upon the property of another man worth ten 
times as much, not counting the expenditure of time and 
labor in creating the latter, seems too barbarous to be cred- 
ible in these enlightened days. 

This law says tliat a planter must erect a fence nine rails 
hio-h and above these rails affix others by " stake and rider." 
This is to keep roving cattle and horses from leaping over. 
Then the base of this fence must be laid in small rails, so 
that they may be close enough to deter ' * razor-backs " from 
creeping under. 

A few years ago we noted in one of our State papers an 
article from a prominent orange-grower, which is so apro- 
pos that we can not do better than quote from it. 

*' Myself and neighbors have done and still have to do 
considerable fencing. In fact the heaviest immediate out- 
lay, when extending our groves or fields, is for the fences 
that vv^e have to make to keep our neighbors' worthless 
* razor - backs ' from destro3dng the result of our labors. 
Now, by a little figuring, I find that I could well afford to 
pay one hundred dollars, if thereby I could have the hogs 
shut up so that I should have only to fence against cattle. 
To have the cattle also fenced in would be worth at least 
another hundred dollars to me to-day, to say nothing of 
the great saving iu the future by reason of not having to 
keep in repair the fences already built and by the increased 
fertility of my land if not burned off by the stockmen each 
year. 

"While thinking this matter over, a neighbor, who has 
just cast his lot with us and purchased five acres of land, 



ALL ABOUT FENCES. 329 

came along, and I asked him what he would give to have 
the hogs shut up to-day. He replied that he would will- 
ingly give fifty dollars, but that it would be worth much 
more than that to him. 

" Soon another came by, and in reply to the same ques- 
tion, said two hundred dollars would not nearly pay for 
the fencing that he had got to do on account of the * cuss- 
ed critters.' Another set the figure at one hundred. 

" It will cost each of us in the next two years much more 
than the sums named, in cash, to so fix things that we can 
plant a few dollars' worth of sweet potatoes, on our own land, 
Avith any hope of ever getting a bite of them. We are not 
alone. I feel sure that nine out of ten that I would meet 
in a day's ride would come down handsomely with money 
if thereby they could do away with this nuisance. 

''After laying out fifty dollars and considerable labor to 
fence a small field of less than one and one half acres, I 
became foolish enough to put a small part of it in potatoes, 
thinking that that lot was safe from hogs, guarded as it 
was by six strands of barbed wire drawn taut with * watch 
tackle,' so that the wire was pulled in two several times 
before completed, and with posts set near together. The 
potatoes came up nicely and did fine. When nearly ready 
to dig they came up again and were done fine — too fine. 
Nature's greatest mistake had them. I had my gun with 
me, well loaded with coarse shot. I saw several queer, 
limber things jerking about just above ground along my 
potato rows. They looked like uneasy snakes. Man usu- 
ally kills the snakes he sees ; but I knew they were not 
snakes. I knew from long experience that that kind of a 
• quirk meant pig somewhere near. I sat my gun down 
against a palmetto tree and quietly drove them away, and 
said to the next man I met that the next office-seeker I 
voted for would help me on the fence question." 



330 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Now, this complaint was written two years ago, and, by 
way of pointing out the moral of our statement of a mo- 
ment ago, we will add that in the neighborhood referred 
to, although the objectionable law is still in force, the 
thrifty settlers are no more troubled with the inroads of 
their four-footed enemies. It has been the experience there, 
as in many other localities (our own is one of them), that 
the owners of this lawless kind of stock were made to feel 
that it was somewhat unprofitable to find their " bunches," 
as they are termed, of "razor-backs" gradually but surely 
disappearing without any return. Of course no one ever 
kncAV what became of them. Certainly not: they simply 
departed and left no trace behind, unless sundry unusually 
thrifty growths, in spots, of trees or vegetables might serve 
as indications that some strong fertilizers had been buried 
close by. 

So, finally, the owners concluded either to shut up their 
hogs and fatten them at home, or kill them once for all. 

''Let us be thankful," we heard a justly irate settler 
exclaim one day, "Let us be thankful, at least, that the 
law allows us to go to all this expense to try to shut out 
those wretches, and don't compel us to open wide our gates 
for their benefit ! " 

And he used the word "try" advisedly too, because it 
is only a ' ' try " after all ; for, get inside they will in some 
way, in spite of the expensive "legal fence," whose erection 
and repairs bear heavily on purse or muscle. 

And if, exasperated beyond endurance at the sight of 
his treasured potato patch trampled and uprooted, and his 
chief dependence for his family's subsistence destroyed be- 
fore his eyes, the injured man ventures to punish the dep- 
redators (openly), or do ought else but turn them away 
without harm to them (as to himself and property, what 
matters that?), he is ignominiously summoned before a 



ALL ABOrx FENCES. 331 

magistrate and sentenced to pay frequently more than the 
full market value of the marauder. 

"You ought to make your fence hog and cattle -proof, 
and then you would not be annoyed." 

Exactly ! but it would take a genius to solve the prob- 
lem of what is " hog and cattle proof." 

Looking at those marvelous creatures, yclept "razor- 
backs," in sarcastic reference to the prominence of their 
vertebrae, let us see what they are equal to in the way of 
burglary. 

When we first "came over" to Florida, we had only 
made acquaintance with pigs in the city markets, "drawn 
and quartered." We liked them very well there; they 
looked so fat, clean, and comfortable; no visions of the fu- 
ture marred our then complacency as regarded hogs. En 
route to our Florida home we passed on the road, or, more 
correctly, wagon track, a group of queer black objects, 
bodies long, lank, lean, with backs that looked like the 
inverted keel of a vessel, legs slim and suggestive of stilts ; 
snouts sharp and pointed, eyes like beads, and tails in many 
instances destitute of the far-famed graceful curve of a 
"pig's tail." 

"What are those things 1 " we exclaimed; "surely you 
don't call them hogs ? " 

"Well," replied our driver, slowly — he was a genuine 
"Cracker" — "I don't just rightly know. We calls 'em 
razor-backs. N-o, I. don't reckon they is hogs." 

So, to this day, we too ' ' don't reckon they is hogs ; " we 
would not dare to bestow the title on these odd creatures, 
and then look their staid, respectable portly Xorthern con- 
genei's in the face. 

- That is how they look, and their actions are fully in ac- 
cord with their unique appearance. 

Between the house-lots of one of our neighbors and our- 



332 HOME LIFE IX FLORIDA. 

selves there were no fences, and the outer boundaries of 
the two (making an inclosure of about fifteen acres) Avere 
fenced with the then all-prevalent rail fence ; the latter 
Avas not all new, and, as events proved, needed repairs. 

AVell, the very first morning that dawned on us in our 
new home was made lively by the squealing of pigs, the 
barking of a dog, and the shouts of men, as the whole 
party of pursued and pursuers dashed over our premises, 
here, there, every where ; for full half an hour the chase 
was hot and heavy, a panel of fence being torn down first 
in one place, then in another, as hope grew brighter on the 
flight of the fugitives toward the one j^oint or the other ; 
but at last they were cornered and driven out into the 
woods. They had done damage not a little, but the law 
made them sacred from the reward of evil-doers. 

And then the forlorn and wearied victors, flushed, pant- 
ing, covered from head to foot with sand-spurs, a luxuriant 
product of cultivated fields when neglected — sat down to 
pluck up their courage and to pick ofi' the sharp spurs as 
best they might. 

And the next thing was to make a tour of the w^hole in- 
closure, critically examine the fence and institute necessary 
repairs. 

But the next day, and the next, and the next, tl>e same 
impromptu performance w^as repeated. If a rotten rail 
could not be found at the bottom of the fence, the razor- 
backs would root a hole beneath and creep through ; night 
after night they feasted upon our chufas, sweet potatoes, 
corn, and vegetables. 

In the day-time they came just the same, nothing daunt- 
ed by the daily chase ; but then they could be seen and 
driven out before much more mischief was done. 

On our neighbors' land, within ear-shot of our dwelling, 
w^as a small building, one room occupied by a woman and 



ALL ABOUT FENCES. 333 

her five-year-old child ; it was near this spot that the ma- 
rauders usually found entrance, and the child acted as a 
detective. Often and often we would hear it cry out excit- 
edly, "Mom, mom, pigs, pigs! " and then, as a hubbub of 
squeals, barks, and shouts shortly followed, we would think 
of David Copperfield's famous Aunt Betsey, and would 
softly murmur, "Janet, donkeys!" 

Morning after morning we were roused from sleep by 
the grunts and squeals of the invading razor-backs and the 
barks and growls of a dog beneath our feet, the former 
taking refuge beneath the house (like all Florida houses, 
it was built upon blocks), and there holding their pursuers 
at bay. 

Finally, in desperation, and with reluctance because of 
the increased expense, a close board fence, fondly deemed 
hog-proof, was erected in place of the rails ; but still, alas ! 
the razor-backs put in an appearance. 

" The how and the where" of their entrance was a mys- 
tery. That it was on the line of the new fence was certain ; 
for, when pursued, they invariably, after tacking back and 
forth over the fifteen-acre inclosure without either rhyme 
or reason for such maneuver, ended by finding exit in that 
direction. 

Well, we watched, sorely perplexed. What, think you, 
did we finally discover ? 

Those wonderful razor-backs, not being permitted to 
"grub" under the new fence, had actually climbed over 
it ! Standing on their hind legs, they hooked their fore 
legs over the second board from the base, raised their hind 
legs to the top of the base-board, and then the smaller ones 
pushed themselves through between the second and third 
boards, while the larger ones climbed all the way to the 
top of the fourth and last board, and came flying down on 
the inside! 



334 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

The owner of these acrobatic creatures could not credit 
our statement until he saw for himself, and then, knowing 
that not even Florida law would punish the destruction 
of such arrant blockade-runners, he drove them out of our 
neighborhood — to torment some other unfortunates. 

These were the same chicken-eating razor-backs to which 
we have referred elsewhere, and most thankful were we to 
see them disappear. 

Then, as to making a fence " cattle-proof" (a rail fence 
which, until very recently, was the almost universal fence 
of Florida), that too was more easily said than done. 

Our neighbors had roving herds of cattle, and they were 
always trespassing ; we observed, too, that it was always a 
cow that led the rest of its companions into mischief, its 
sex being, as we all know, more energetic, pei'severing, and 
enterprising than the opposite. 

One would suppose that a fence ten rails high, though 
not "staked and ridered," would be ample to prevent cows 
from leaping over; but they find a way to get inside and 
devastate fields of corn and cow-peas and vegetables, all 
the same. Did you ever see them go to work to overcome 
such triflino; difficulties as rail fences? 

*' No?" Well, this is how they do it. They have three 
ways of accomplishing their praiseworthy designs; either 
one is efiectual, and bespeaks an intelligence worthy of a 
better cause. 

One is to stand by the fence, lower the head, thrust the 
horns under the top rail and then to toss it to one side ; 
then to serve the next, and the next, and the next in the 
same manner, and by that time the fence is low enough to 
jump over with ease, so the leader "rises equal to the oc- 
casion," and " the herd follows." 

A second method is for one cow to retire to a distance 
of twenty yards or so, then, head down, to run full tilt 



ALL ABOUT FENCES. 335 

against the fence ; down it topples, and over they all go, 
rejoicing. 

The third way is to place their breasts against the rails, 
and by dint of bending their hind legs and pushing with 
all their might, over goes the fence, stake, rider and all. 
The stake and rider stops the first method, but is no hin- 
drance to the second and third. 

After this, let no one say that the native Florida cow is 
not intelligent. Our belief is, if she were sent to college, 
she would graduate at the head of her class with honors. 
She is brought up like the city street gamin, and, like the 
gamin, soon becomes pre ternatu rally cunning in learning 
to take care of herself. 

Oxen, too, soon learn the same lesson. A saw-mill, lo- 
cated near our dwelling at the time of our settlement, em- 
ployed four of these patient, much-enduring animals ; all 
day long they hauled heavy logs, but at night they were 
turned loose to wander at will and forage for themselves 
where they could, a large bell that discoursed any thing 
rather than "sweet music" being secured around their 
necks to give their owners notice of their whereabouts. 
^ Not alone their owners, however, as we soon learned to 
our sorrow ; night after night for long, weary weeks, we 
were compelled to rise from our beds, sometimes three or 
four times in one night, to drive away from beneath our 
windows these same oxen, of whose presence there, in the 
midst of our corn and cow-peas, the clashing bells gave 
warning. 

It was impossible to raise the fence high enough or build 
it strong enough to resist their determined assaults; there 
was no remedy. Not only had we no wish to incur the 
enmity of their owners by shooting the trespassers, but 
humanity forbade us to injure the innocent animals who 
were unconscious of wrong-doing ; only for this latter con-. 



336 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

sideration it might have fared ill with them, for our fences 
complied with the fiction of a ' ' lawful, cattle-proof" fence, 
and the owner could not have collected damages for the 
death of his oxen. 

Now, looking at the right or wrong, at the justice or in- 
justice of this important matter, how does it stand? 

The common law is supposed to give equal rights to all ; 
it is supposed to protect one neighbor from the depreda- 
tions of another. If a man comes upon our land w-hen he 
is warned to stay off of it, he becomes a trespasser, and is 
liable to answer at law. If he steals our property, he is a 
criminal, and the law decrees a severe punishment for such 
an offense ; if he sends his servant to rob or assault us, he 
is held responsible for the acts of his servant. 

This is the law of the land, the law of all civilized peo- 
ple ; yet how is it in Florida ? 

A neighbor may not trespass on our inclosed lands, or 
rob us without putting himself under the ban of the law ; 
but he can send forth his cattle, his hogs, his sheep, his 
horses, to trespass on our property and steal the hard won 
fruits of our toil, and we dare not retaliate. If we do, 
the law wdil punish us for objecting to the theft or pro- 
tecting our property. 

In our own immediate locality this past season, one leap- 
ing, pushing "leader-cow," in a roaming herd, caused so 
much damage and expense to others than its owmer, that 
deep and general indignation was aroused; but what good 
did that do ? 

The offending animal is still at liberty to teach and lead 
other cows to "go and do likewise." Within a radius of 
two miles that one cow, worth fifteen dollars, compelled 
fences to be raised higher, at a cost of over one hundred 
dollars, besides destroying ten acres of cow-peas and corn, 
and several patches of sweet potatoes and young cabbages. 



ALL ABOUT FENCES. 337 

SO that the families depending upon them for their winter 
supply were obliged to purchase. 

Let us be devoutly thankful that these two unjust, dis- 
criminating laws (fire and cattle), must ere long become 
things of the past ; where they are not actually and legally 
repealed, public opinion and the rapid, omvard march of 
improvement in agriculture and in stock will, of themselves, 
cause their ignominious suppression and disuse. It will 
not pay to burn one's own fences and trees, nor will it pay 
to turn costly cattle out to shift for themselves; hence, 
there will be less incentive to fire the woods or to allow 
cattle to roam abroad. 

Meantime let us be thankful for another thing that now- 
adays, in these times of far-reaching improvements, neither 
the Florida farmer (nor any other) need longer be at the 
mercy of rail — no, nor even of board fences. 

Having been taught by the most accomplished teacher 
in the world, Experience, after a goodly amount of lessons 
no less painful than costly, that the prosaic question of 
fences is one of great and pressing importance to every one 
outside of cities, and to none more than to the farmer, stock- 
raiser, and fruit-grower, Ave have given this subject special 
attention with a view to ascertaining not only the best but 
the cheapest kinds of fencing for such purposes. 

It is not often that the " best" and "cheapest" are iden- 
tical ; but, thanks to the inventive genius of these pro- 
gressive days, we have succeeded beyond our most sanguine 
expectations; we have found both combined, and hence- 
forth it is the settler's own fault if he is longer at the 
mercy of cows, horses, oxen, fires, or, worse than all, 
razor-backs. 

Had we possessed a fence of either of the kinds we shall 
presently point out, in those early days we have referred 
to, we would not have been harassed, body and temper, 

22 



338 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

and damaged in our property ; we should have laughed at 
the vain efforts of our four-footed foes to invade our prem- 
ises and steal our produce, and have defied the forest-fires 
to burn our fences. 

There is a fence which has been only recently introduced 
to public notice, yet has already won from all the highest 
praise, even enthusiasm ; in four States alone, last year, 
over twenty-five thousand miles of this fence were sold, 
and from every purchaser came back the most satisfactory 
reports. It is being extensively used in nearly every State 
in the Union, and also in Canada, with the same gratify- 
ing results to its manufacturers, the Georgia Fence Com- 
pany, 28 Peach-tree Street, Atlanta, Georgia. 

The Committee of Agriculture of the General Assembly 
of Georgia were invited to examine this fence officially, 
and they unanimously pronounced it ' ' the greatest fence 
ever made." 

The experienced Commissioner of Agriculture of the 
same State gives it this strong official indorsement : 

" After a careful examination of the ' Combination Wire 
and Picket Fence,' made by the Georgia Fence Company, 
I am of opinion that it offers to the farmers of the State 
several very decided advantages. It is very strong, dura- 
ble, cheap, to some extent ornamental, and free from the 
objection so generally urged against the barbed wire fence ; 
it can not injure stock." 

And the Assistant Commissioner follows suit : * ' The 
fence question is becoming a serious one for the farmer. 
Being a farmer myself, and needing fences, I have been 
investigating, and have decided that the Wire and Picket 
Fence made by the Georgia Fence Company is the most 
practical and economical ever introduced." 

Says a well-known banker on the same subject: "I am 
more than pleased with the fencing. Have investigated 



ALL ABOUT FENCES. 339 

the subject pretty thoroughly, and it is decidedly the best 
for all purposes I have ever seen. It ^yill turn any kind 
of stock, from a pig to a bull — is easily stretched, saves 
and improves the land in appearance and value." 

And another says : "It stands as firm as the Rock of 
Gibraltar." 

And now, let us see exactly what this valuable fence is 
made of: five double strands of galvanized wire, that is, 
ten wires woven in and out around pickets or slats. 

The "Standard Farm Fence," four feet high, painted, 
with the pickets two to two and a half inches apart, is sold 
at five cents a running foot, and at this price costs less 
than the ordinary picket fence. It comes in rolls of fifty 
to one hundred feet long. The posts are set sixteen to 
twenty feet apart. Here is another of its cheap points, for 
many more posts are needed for board or picket fences. 

The fence is secured to the posts with staples, and when 
you want to move it, all you have to do is to draw the 
staples, roll up the pickets and carry them where the new 
line is to be run. Two men can put up a mile of this 
fencing in a day, and the process is so simple that any one 
can do it. This is one of the rarest and most valuable 
features a fence can have ; a movable fence is worth ten 
times as much as any other. 

By cutting the rolls apart, nailing on strips top and bot- 
tom, with a brace running from one to the other, gates, 
large and strong, may be made of this accommodating 
fence. 

While the usual "Farm Fence" is four feet high, it can 
be made higher to order, or the same result may be ob- 
tained by placing a board at the bottom, an excellent plan, 
especially for vegetable gardens and poultry-yards ; and 
then, if the posts are run up six inches or so above the 
top line, and a barbed wire stretched along from one to an- 



340 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

other, the fence at once becomes proof against boys and 
tramps, no small consideration where poultry, fruits, and 
vegetables are concerned. 

While the ' ' Farm Fence " is very neat and trim when 
painted, ornamental and lawn fences, costing from fifteen 
to twenty-five cents a foot, are made to order on the same 
machine. 

To sum up, this fence is very strong, cheap, durable, no 
chance to rot out any where, can not be blown down, will 
keep out stray animals, even rabbits, and keep in your own. 

We have dwelt thus at length upon this fence subject, 
because experience has taught us its importance. We are 
not quite done yet, either. There are two more fences that 
are well worthy of attention, not only from the fact that 
they are really "home-made," in the truest sense of the 
term, inasmuch as the right to make them can be bought 
for a mere trifle, while the possession of the " farm-right" 
will save hundreds of dollars in fencing expenses 

One of these two, also a wire and picket fence, is made 
by the " Fairburn-Hulbert Fence Machine," which not 
only uses any kind and number of wires, with any length, 
or size pickets, willows, or canes, but can also be used for 
stretching the wires of any other kind of fencing. 

It is a simple little machine, with no cogs, no castings or 
wheels ; so simple in fact, that any one who buys a fiirm- 
right can, if he chooses, rather than pay $10 for the ready- 
made machine, make one for himself, with about $2 worth 
of lumber, a saw, hatchet, and auger, and it will be just 
as good as the one made by the manufacturer. 

The little machine, when set on the ground at work, looks 
not unlike a wooden frog frantically endeavoring to leap 
backward at the end of several wire tethers. It is a com- 
ical little affair, but, like some other small people, capable 
of wonderful work. 



ALL ABOUT FENCES. 341 

The farm-right gives to the purchaser license to use the 
machine on his own lands for seventeen years ; it costs for 
forty acres or less, $2, eighty acres, $4, one hundred acres, 
$5, and so increases up to one thousand acres at a cost of 
$17.50. These terms are certainly liberal enough to suit 
any one, especially as any number of machines may be 
made and operated on the same land at the same time. 

This little machine, to which was awarded the highest 
premium at the North Central and South American Expo- 
sition in 1886, is a godsend to those who want a good, dur- 
able, fire-proof fence made at home. Once possessing the 
machine, the wire is the only outside expense, a very light 
one, as the pickets and posts can be made from one's own 
timber, and in many cases by one's own ''strong right 
arm," and fencing made ad libitum. 

The same manufacturer (A. G. Hulbert, 904 Olive Street, 
St. Louis, Missouri) owns also another patent for "Home- 
made Wire-netting," in other words, an all-wire fence. 

This netting fence, with galvanized wire, which is the 
cheapest in the end, costs from twenty-five to fifty cents a 
rod (sixteen and one half feet) according to the size of the 
mesh, and the right to make it is sold on the same terms 
as that of the wire and picket fence. 

The posts are set sixteen or more feet apart ; the wires 
strung up on the posts at the desired distances apart, par- 
allel, of course ; the outer or selvedge edges drawn tight, 
the others left slack ; two strips, with spikes set in them as 
far apart as the meshes are to be, are fastened to the selv- 
edge edges, tlie slack wires resting on the spikes ; with this 
basis to rest on, the meshes are formed by passing a per- 
pendicular wire back and forth. 

The manner of working is very simple, and any farm- 
hand of ordinary intelligence could make the meshes, and 
make them rapidly too. 



342 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Every body likes an all-wire fence, but heretofore it has 
been beyond the reach of people of small means. Now, 
however, thanks to Mr. Hulbert, it is placed within the 
grasp of every one. 

It is scarcely needful to remark that the netting can be 
made coarse, if only cattle are to be fenced, or fine enough 
to turn rabbits, poultry, gophers, or other such "small 
game," and with a barbed wire at the top from post to post, 
will effectually turn the "small boy " also. It is well worth 
while to send for a circular, and find out all about it, and 
about every other kind of iron fence as well. 

In making ordinary farm-gates it is a frequent fault to 
make them too heavy. Where an ordinary board fence is 
used, boards five inches wide, top and bottom, are quite 
strong for a ten-foot gate ; for the ends use the same, one 
on each side, well secured with screw-bolts ; on these nail 
four or five slats according to the height of the gate ; and 
last, but not least, nail on the brace from the upper hinge 
to the toe of the gate, just exactly the reverse way from 
the common custom. It is a curious fact that so simple a 
thing as this is so seldom done right, when it is just as 
easy as to do it wrong. Then, to finish up, put on three 
perpendicular slats on the opposite side from the brace, and 
you will have a gate that will endure for years upon years. 

The directions for the brace, from ujjper hinge to toe, 
and the vertical pieces opposite, also hold good for the 
wire and picket and netting fence gates. 

Another important point : A gate that will open but one 
way is only half a gate ; it ought to swing freely both 
ways; look out for this in getting your hinges. 

And still another point : No one wants gates that sag or 
swing sideways, yet nearly every one has them so. There 
is no necessity for it, and here is how to avoid it. 

There is little use in expending extra labor on the gate- 



ALL ABOUT FENCES. 343 

posts to keep them upright ; set them firmly at the start, 
aud then set the gate properly and there \vill be no trouble. 
Let the toe of the gate rest always solidly, either when 
shut or open, on a stone or block; with this simple arrange- 
ment the gate will not "draw^" the post, nor sag; without 
it, it will, no matter Avhat you do to the post; then, by 
putting the latch or fastening near the top, the gate is 
prevented from ever getting that side twist that is so un- 
sightly in the majority of gates. 

And now, in closing, a few words about preserving the 
posts : 

*' Many farmers believe that fence-posts set top end down 
last longer than those set butts down. Professor Beal, of 
Michigan Agricultural College, in a report of his experi- 
ments in post-setting, says that the average results are not 
in favor of inverted posts ; in a word, he found on a fair 
average the results the same, whether set top or butts 
down. Small or medium posts, other things being equal, 
last longer than large ones. Red cedar is the preferred 
timber for posts ; yellow cedar also endures well. Catalpa 
has of late years been largely employed for posts. Farm- 
ers w^ho have soft timber to deal with try various processes 
for preserving the same wdien used for posts. Coal-tar has 
proven effective in many cases for preserving the post be- 
neath the ground and crude petroleum above the ground. 
Petroleum penetrates the pores of the wood freely. A good 
preparation is to soak the posts thoroughly with petroleum 
and then hold it by an exterior coat of coal-tar. Charring 
the surface of the post has been practiced with satisfactory. 
effect, first covering the post with hot coal-tar sufficiently 
high to reach a few inches above ground. Coal-tar alone 
applied to that portion of the post immediately above 
ground does not seem to do much good. The action of the 
weather appears to neutralize its preservative effect." 



344 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

HOUSEHOLD HELP. 

Of course there are trials to be met ; there is no use in 
denying it ; for no one with common sense would credit 
such a denial. But the greatest of these in Florida is 
servants. 

Every housekeeper, North, South, East, or West, knows 
full well that her path is not strewn with roses, whether 
she has servants to do the work (or make more work), or 
whether to her duties, as wife and mother, must be added 
those of cook and maid-of-all-work. 

This latter is a position, or rather a combination of posi- 
tions, held, and held competently too, by hundreds of thou- 
sands of women in this weary w^orld of ours, and we have 
yet to see the first man who would have the patience and 
energy to meet so many varied calls upon his time and 
temper, nerves and strength, or to master and control so 
many different branches of duty. 

In no country is the housekeeper's plaoe a sinecure, and 
we do not claim for Florida an exception to the universal 
rule, although for obvious reasons the general work of 
keeping the house clean is certainly less than in the North, 
where constant winter fires, mud, rain and slush, add heavy 
items to the sum total of work that was heavy enough 
before. 

But even in genial Florida, with her sunny, mild win- 
ters, houses must be kept in order, meals must be cooked, 
and, worse than all, dishes, pots, and pans must be washed 
three times every day, twenty-one times every week, ninety 
times every month — nearly eleven hundred times every 
year! 



HOUSEHOLD HELP. 345 

Did you ever think of that, with its weary, dreary mo- 
notony ? Let some of the grumbling husbands and fathers 
think of this one item of the home-life work, and they will 
drop their heads abashed. 

This is only one single item ; the business of a house- 
keeper is a complicated one ; a hundred different branches 
of skilled labor massed into one — a piece of complex ma- 
chinery, each part fitting into some other part, working 
smoothly so long as all are kept under control and oiled ; 
but creating a terrible clashing and confusion so soon as 
one portion is thrown out of gear. 

We have tried it in the North with servants, trained, 
competent servants; we have tried it in the South with 
servants — not trained, and without them — and our verdict 
is, that the life of a housekeeper is full of trials and trib- 
ulations. 

The worst trial the Florida housekeeper has to encounter 
is the total absence of competent, reliable help in house or 
kitchen. To be sure, there are in most sections plenty of 
so-called "cooks" to be had, and, generally, the new-comer 
who can afford to pay from eight to ten dollars per month, 
and has never been accustomed to doing her own work, 
makes it her first business to secure one of these wonderful 
assistants immediately — we call them " wonderful " advis- 
edly, as will presently appear. 

And if the ''lady of the house" has cherished dreams 
of the famous old plantation "aunties," so neat, so tidy, 
so faithful, so respectful, so competent to do all and every 
thing, then ' ' great is the fall thereof" 

Of a far different class from the faithful old slaves of 
yore are the present generation of free-born colored ladies 
and gentlemen. 

Not long since one of the former was hailed in the streets 
of Jacksonville. 



346 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

'' Hello, Chloe! where are you going so fast?" 

'' Goiu'? I'se goin' to see the lady what washes for the 
woman what lives in dis yere house." 

The said " woman " being one of the elite of Jacksonville. 

AVe have had "gentlemen" call at our house, making 
inquiry ' ' if the young lady was at home ? " and the first 
time, in our innocence and ignorance, sent our sister to 
meet the caller, supposing he had been engaged without 
our knowledge, to cut wood "or such." 

And we smiled audibly when investigation revealed the 
truth, that the "young lady" was the colored girl em- 
ployed in our kitchen. More than once, too, has our 
" young gentleman" been asked for by other gentlemen of 
his own sable hue. 

The above was not the only ludicrous mistake made be- 
fore we settled down resignedly to the knowledge that the 
employers were only w^hite men and women, while the col- 
ored people were the ladies and gentlemen of the commu- 
nity ; but we know all about it now, though an occasional 
smile is still inevitable. 

How the terms ever came to be thus confused and re- 
versed, no one can say ; but it is certainly a very uncom- 
mon thing for the Florida negroes to use them in the con- 
ventional way, whether speaking to the white people, or 
in ordinary conversation among themselves. Occasionally 
they use the prefix "culled" to gentleman or lady; but 
as a rule this is omitted, to the frequent confusion of the 
ignorant " white folks," who know no better. 

The older ones, those who spent at least the earlier years 
of their lives as slaves and received some training, are very 
scarce in Florida ; they have, for the most part, remained 
near their old homes in the older States, and the few who 
have found their way hither have settled on homesteads 
of their own, and are as a class well-to-do, industrious cit- 



HOUSEHOLD HELP. 347 

izens, recognizing their proper place in the community, 
and quite content to render due respect to their white 
neighbors,, though they look down upon the " poor white 
trash," and in many instances justly so. And in return they 
receive the respect and support of those around them. 

We could name several within a radius of five miles of 
our present home, who are the owners of broad lands, a 
horse and wagon, great fields of cotton and corn, flourish- 
ing groves and a comfortable house ; such a property and 
such a home as thousands of educated men in the North 
and West, and East and South, toil all their lives without 
attaining to one half their value and comfort. 

And in the older Southern States there are many such 
examples as these of the ''poor, down-trodden negroes of 
the South," who are so industriously held up to view and 
waved aloft by certain desperate politicians of the North. 
The status and treatment of the negro, under the same 
circumstances, is far better in the South than in the North, 
and it is full time that this fact should be universally ac- 
knowledged, as it is already by many of that race them- 
selves. 

But these negroes of the better class are the exceptions 
in Florida, and are very rarely available for servants. 

The younger generation only " hires out" for household 
work, and all are ' ' cooks," no matter whether they know 
how to make a loaf of bread, a pie, a pudding, or even to 
cook an ordinary "meat and vegetable dinner," or not; 
and it is more frequently "not" than otherwise. 

The housekeeper who engages the ordinary Florida cook 
must make up her mind to "endure all things," or do her 
own work. The probability is strong that after a time she 
will come to the conclusion that the latter alternative not 
only involves less expense, but less wear and tear to nerve, 
temper, and strength. 



348 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

We can perhaps best illustrate our meaning by narrating 
some of our own experiences in this path ; it was not 
strewn with roses, although there was an oasis of laughter 
here and there along the weary road, especially after the 
ruts were numbered among the things of the past. 

When our new Florida life commenced, we found the 
routine of household work far from pleasant, having never 
before been without trained, competent city servants to do 
it all for us. 

Especially did we grow desperately weary of the disa- 
greeable monotony of washing dishes, pots, and pans, three 
times every day. It was all uninviting enough ; but this 
was the worst feature, as every housekeeper knows. 

So, when a little colored girl, about eleven years old, 
whom Ave will call the Goddess — since she bore the name 
of one of those classic deities — came one day, and made 
request that we would keep her ' ' to wash dishes and do 
errands," we gladly accepted the offer. 

We soon discovered, however, that we had a very fair 
specimen of a self-willed, untamed savage in our kitchen, 
and that the task of reducing the same to subjection would 
require no small amount of patience and perseverance. 

The Goddess was gifted with more than the usual acu- 
men of her race, and was capable of learning, if she wished 
to, which is more than can be said of the majority ; but 
her temper was sullen and obstinate in the extreme. 

We manao^ed to teach her to read and to write, after a 
fashion of her own, and very proud she was, and fond of 
displaying her accomplishments. 

Our chief troubles were to teach her the meaning of the 
words " obey," and " order," and the fact that china would 
not bear as rough usage as iron, ideas w^hich it seemed im- 
possible for her to comprehend. 

She possessed the proverbial characteristic of the negro 



HOUSEHOLD HELP. 349 

race to perfection, an utter carelessness in regard to prop- 
erty, whether her own or another's, and an utter absence 
of thought for the morrow. 

Once, after ''saving up," to buy a much-needed calico 
dress, she expended the money in a glass card-receiver, 
very pretty, it is true, and of course exceedingly useful to 
her, only she broke it before she left the store. She returned 
home sadder, but no wiser. 

Again, her savings were expended in a viniagrette bottle, 
with gilded chains in a gay ribbon, which went into the 
washtub the next day, and a gaudy fau which soon helped 
to feed the kitchen fire. 

And when these purchases were made, we had been try- 
ing to train the Goddess for over four years ! 

To go back to her several oddities, which caused us many 
trials and tribulations : One day we heard a terrible clat- 
ter of breaking china, and, stepping out to the kitchen, 
found the Goddess performing a jig in the midst of a mass 
of broken plates, singing as she danced, 

"Once there was six, now there's two; 
Hoo, hoo, hoo ! hoo, hoo, boo ! " 

On another occasion, inquiry being made as to the dis- 
appearance of a handsome china bowl, her eyes twinkled 
and her teeth gleamed as she answered, 

" Tears like it hopped off de table, and went to ' King- 
dom Come.'" 

As it was at first, it continued to the last, a matter of 
perfect indifference as to how much destruction her rough 
handling caused. 

She had a habit that became very annoying of asking 
for any thing she happened to take a fancy to, and an- 
swered every reproof with, 

' ' I'd sooner ast than take ; " and that was true — the 
Goddess was honest. 



350 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

It was a great disadvantage to her well-being as well as 
to ours, that her family lived only a few miles away, and 
their influence and example were constantly drawing her 
back into her old ways. 

Whenever allowed to visit her old home, even for one 
day, she would return with the buttons cut from her dress 
and pins inserted in their place, and every little article of 
adornment that had been given her, ribbons, collars, hats, 
handkerchiefs, shared the same fate. ''Mom tuck 'em," 
was the explanation ; even her dresses were carried off 
when *' Mom" or her elder sisters came to see her. 

Looking at the full moon one night, soon after she came 
into our household, through a powerful field-glass, her first 
experience of the kind, the Goddess startled us by a shriek, 
and dropping the glass, turned a summersault backward 
up the portico-steps, and lay there gasping with her eyes 
shut. Presently she opened them, and raised herself cau- 
tiously, looked up at the far-away luminary, then at us and 
the field-glass, in a ludicrously bewildered way, then draw- 
ing a long breath, exclaimed, 

' ' Oh, LaAvd ! I done thought fur shure it was tumblin' 
on top of me ! I was skeert most to death ! " 

Familiarity breeds contempt ; finding that the dreaded 
luminary still remained at a safe distance, the Goddess 
proceeded to tell us about the man who lived up there ; 
how once, long, long ago, a bad black man had gone out to 
pick up a load of wood on Sunday, when the Lord had 
told him not to, and how, to punish him, he had been sent 
to live alone in the moon, and forever walk about with a 
load of wood on his back ; and how, ever since, he had been 
trying 'to make other folks bad so as to have some company. 

This, we afterward found, was the negro explanation of 
the far-famed '' man in the moon," one of their many su- 
perstitions. 



HOUSEHOLD HELP. 351 

Once a question Avas propounded to the Goddess apropos 
of the setting sun. 

" How is it that the sun sets over there, in front of you, 
and rises in the east, behind you ? " 

A puzzled expression stole over those dark features, and 
the short, crinkly hair was rubbed up on end. The God- 
dess had put her thinking-caj) on, and this was the result, 
triumphantly announced : 

' ' Why, it done goes through a hole in the earth, and 
comes out on the other side. In course I knows that, 
pooh ! " 

Her expression of scorn was overwhelming ; how could 
we have supposed her so ignorant ? She knew, of course 
she did ! 

Our smile, though irrepressible, was rather grim. We 
had been training that " young idea how to shoot" for over 
two years, and this was a fair specimen of the result, ex- 
cept for the reading, which was more successful. 

The Goddess had not so exalted an idea of her race as 
had some of her contemporaries. She had an unpleasant 
habit of throwing herself into all kinds of uncouth atti- 
tudes, and of twisting tongue and features to correspond. 
On one especially exasperating occasion, the mater ex- 
claimed, " Why will you act so like a monkey?" 

On went the thinking-cap again, and out of its folds 
emerged this remark, made in all earnestness : 

"Well, niggers is half-monkeys, anyway. I knows it; 
I s'pose that's the reason." 

"Half monkeys! Goodness, child, what ever put that 
idea into your head ? " was the amazed query. 

" Seed 'em in Miss Helen's book; monkeys hangin' to 
trees, jest like niggers, only niggers aint got no tails ; done 
chopped 'em off, I s'pose. Some of the monkeys had n't 
no tails; they was most all niggers," 



352 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

The mater was worsted ; she was no match for this un- 
conscious Darwinian, this primitive evolutionist, and, has- 
tily smoothing the corners of her mouth, beat a hasty re- 
treat. A laugh "loves company" as well as misery. 

For five years we labored patiently to make something- 
better of the Goddess. Several times she was sent home 
in disgrace, but as often returned with the plea to be al- 
lowed one more trial. 

She had some good qualities, and we sought to train her 
in the way she should go ; but it was of no use. Early 
training and outside influences prevailed, and she went 
more and more in the way she should not go, until at last 
we were compelled to give her a final dismissal. 

Then followed an interregnum of weary housework again, 
until we grew desperate enough to seek another assistant. 

Then appeared a "cook" who did not even know how 
to fry potatoes, but was anxious to learn. 

She could wash dishes and clothes, but took her lessons 
in cooking standing in the doorway with her back to the 
stove, while we watched the dinner; if a particle of fat 
flew or " spit" from the frying-pan, our cook fled from the 
kitchen ; she "wasn't goin' to be burnt up 'fore her time, 
'deed she was n't ! " 

Several times she took to her bed for several days, but 
entertained company gaily ; and once, after we had waited 
on her and carried her meals to her, she arose, brought the 
dishes into the kitchen for us to wash, and departed to visit 
a neighbor. 

We bore much for the sake of being spared the dish- 
washing and hunting up a washer-woman ; but when, with 
the Christmas dinner on the stove, and stranger-guests in 
the parlor, we found the fire out, the kitchen deserted and 
our "cook" strolling in the woods picking flowers, we felt 
that even our patience had reached its limit. 



HOUSEHOLD HELP. 353 

She departed the next day, a much-abused victim. 

Our next servant could cook plain dinners, with some 
superintendence; but we "wore her heart out a-washiu' 
dishes," and she soon vanished. 

** Mighty kind folks," was the verdict reported to us; 
"but, they'se got too much style for me; big plates for 
dinner, little plates fer termaterses, and more plates fer 
pudden ; it jest Avore the heart out o' me." For a family 
of four members, her heart appeared easily " wore out." 

Our next cook really was a cook, and had acted as such 
in a Jacksonville hotel kitchen, and was competent to do all 
and more than all that was required of her, so we did not 
grudge her the $10 a month she asked, albeit her predeces- 
sors had been content with $S — and well they might ! 

So we drew a long breath of delighted relief; but, alas! 
it was short-lived. 

A cook we had, it was true, but also an invalid; fully 
one third of the time she was in bed, with her work left 
for us to do, and herself to be waited on in addition. 

She occupied the " servants' quarters," a detached room 
back of the kitchen ; and the groanings and gruntings that 
issued thence were simply a^^palling. They were intermit- 
ting too ; we soon discovered that when no one w^as sup- 
posed to be near the groans ceased, but were resumed the 
moment our footsteps proved us to be within hearing. 

While remonstrated with concerning these unpleasant 
noises, her reply was, "The Lawd made some folkses to 
grunt when theyse sick, and some folkses not to grunt. I'se 
one o' the gruntiu' sort. Must grunt — oh, Lawd ! oh, oh ! " 

And she did, there was not the least doubt of that; she 
was a proficient, even a razor-back would have retired into 
a corner, disgruntled. 

This was one of the crosses we had to bear with our new 
cook, and another was — her pipe ; we succeeded in exiling 

• 23 



354 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

it from the kitchen itself, but between whiles tobacco- 
smoke reigned. 

The end of it all was, that we finally concluded to be re- 
signed and do our own work, as being the easiest method, 
having a woman to come in and do the washing and scrub 
floors or do extra work; and we have held to that resolve 
ever since ; it is certainly more peaceful. 

The washer-women, like the Florida cows and "cooks," 
are " curous critters ; " they are usually moderately good 
washers, if watched; but it is very rare to find a good 
ironer among them ; the housekeeper must, as a rule, make- 
up her mind to do her own ironing. 

The charge for ' ' a wash " is from fifty to seventy-five 
cents, and the same amount (it varies as to localities) is 
asked for a day's work. But a wash is " a wash," whether 
finished by noon or by night; in the latter case more pay 
may sometimes be expected ; but in the former no deduc- 
tion is made — that is a difierent case altogether. 

Nor can they ever be depended upon to be punctual to 
any set day ; like the majority of their race, and, unhap- 
pily, many of our own, they have no idea of the sanctity 
of a promise; they are quick to make one, and as quick 
to break it. It is almost useless to expect one to come on 
a Monday; they are usually "too sick" — cause, too much 
shouting and singing at church on Sunday, their evening 
meetings frequently being prolonged till nearly midnight. 

Once, on a special occasion, we engaged a young negro 
girl to come and iron ; she was a total stranger, a new- 
comer in the neighborhood, and we knew of her only by 
hearsay. 

As she approached the house later than she should have 
been, she heard the sound of a piano in the parlor, and, 
instead of directing her footsteps to the kitchen, came in 
through the front door and startled the performer by sud- 



HOUSEHOLD HELP. 355 

clenly appearing in the parlor. She did not even utter the 
usual greeting, "Howdy?" but stood sileutly beside the 
pianist, who was practicing a hymn. 

"Pooh! I don't like that! Play something else right 
smart ! " exclaimed this cool specimen, a self-satisfied grad- 
uate of the Atlanta Colored College, as we learned after- 
ward. 

The player turned round ; it had taken her some time to 
recover from the bewilderment of the unexpected appari- 
tion. 

"Your work is waiting for you out in the kitchen," she 
remarked, mildly. " Go out through the hall; the kitch- 
en is across the piazza." 

" Oh, yes, I know the way ; but I aint in no hurry. I 
want you to play something real lively. I can play the 
pianny, a woman in Atlanta learned me." 

The quiet, decisive closing of the piano was her reply, 
and she stalked away in dignified silence. 

She had been at her ironing scarcely an hour, when a 
" lady" called to see her, and she left a half-ironed garment 
on the board while she strolled with her visitor to the srate : 
she w^as absent fully an hour, and then returned with the 
announcement that she " reckoned she wouldn't iron any 
more that day; for she wanted to take a walk." 

It is needless to say she was given free permission to go, 
and to remain indefinitely. 

Now, this girl w\as impudent of malice pi-epense; she 
considered herself a little better than white people, and in- 
tended to assert her opinions. 

But, aside from the intentional transgressors, it is very 
curious to note the entire absence of all idea of the fitness 
of things, even in the most faithful and respectful of their 
class. 

We have been frequently asked, " What do you ask for 



356 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

makin' a dress like that?" or, " Give me that sack you've 
got on, please ma'am." 

The request to sell articles of dress, or furniture, or to 
make the former "on the machine," as if it were a very 
trifling favor, is of common occurrence. 

No disrespect is intended; it is a relic of the by-gone 
slave days, when the mistress cut out and made the dresses 
for the slaves, gave them all that they had, and taught 
them all that they knew. 

Verily, in the light of our own experience, we pity those 
old-time plantation mistresses from the bottom of our heart. 
Many of the odd, familiar ways that shock our Northern 
notions are simply the remains of the old-time familiarity 
that necessarily existed between those brought up from 
their earliest childhood in daily and hourly contact, even 
though they occupied the relative positions of mistress and 
slave; the latter frequently was treated as an humble 
friend, and proved not unworthy of the trust. 

What Northern servant would dream of entering her 
mistress's room uninvited and unannounced, and, because 
she had nothing else to do, it being evening, should throw 
herself at full length on the floor, and go to sleep there for 
an hour or two ? Yet this is an experience passed through 
by the writer, who, though astonished and amused, knew 
full well that not the least disrespect, but the contrary, 
was the governing motive. 

" My ole missus liked it; we was both on us lonesome," 
the unconscious culprit remarked. 

Again, one colored woman we know, a hard-working^ 
respectable, sensible woman, recently remarked in good 
faith : 

" I does wish you'd like to take my gal ; you knows such 
heaps o' things, all of you ; and you could show her lots. 
I'd like you to larn her to play on the pianny just like you 



HOUSEHOLD HELP. 357 

does, and to sew on the merchine, and to do heaps o' things. 
My ! but I does wish you wanted her ! " 

She was thoroughly in earnest and had not the least idea 
that any one could take exception to her words or wishes, 
or that they were in any Avay unreasonable. 

Perhaps the most satisfactory — nay, we should more cor- 
rectly say, the least unsatisfactory — help the Florida house- 
keeper can find among the native colored population, as at 
present generally constituted, is a ''dish-washer," pure and 
simple ; namely, a boy of about twelve or sixteen years of 
age, who can Avash dishes, pots, and pans, prepare vegeta- 
bles, make fires, carry wood, scour the floors, and at odd 
times do light out-of-door work, such as hoeing and weed- 
ing the flowers. 

From three to five dollars a month are the wages usually 
paid the "dish-washer," and, if a good-tempered, obedient 
boy, who is above the average intelligence of his class, can 
be obtained, he will lighten the burden of housekeeping 
wonderfully. We tried two of them once ; they were not 
of this latter kind, though. 

One was a mulatto boy, who was bright enough, and 
easily taught his duties, but disobedient, indisposed to work 
and very sullen in disposition. He departed suddenly one 
day, by special permission, after threatening to horsewhip 
his mistress because she opined that the corners of the 
kitchen required sweeping as well as the center. 

There is an odd incident connected with this promising 
youth, which so aptly illustrates the fondness of his race 
for high-sounding names, that we can not refrain from in- 
serting it here. 

He had two sisters. One, by the assistance of a fun- 
loving white neighbor, was named "E Pluribus Solus," 
to the intense delight and pride of her parents. The sec- 
ond one was called Jettica, and when, a little later, the 



358 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

baby's complexion promised to belie her name, proving 
yellow instead of jet, the misnomer was corrected by the 
same obliging neighbor, who made it still more striking by 
the addition of Errata. 

E Pluribus Solus and Jettica Errata are now stylish 
*' young ladies." 

Our second dish-washer feared to go out in the rain, at 
least that was the excuse given for a four hours' absence on a 
near-by errand — marbles and two other boys constituting 
the " fear." He preferred fishing to working ; loved to go 
to sleep in the wood-box, Avhile the fire burned out ; con- 
sidered it a superfluity to wipe dishes after having washed 
them, or to wash the outside as well as the inside of pots 
or frying-pans; and finally, after secretly breaking and 
hiding a valuable tool, w^as '' took very bad sick," and de- 
parted — to fish all the afternoon, remain away all night, 
and return the next morning, to be amazed at the mandate 
to take up his clothes and go forthwith to his home. 

But still there are some reasonably satisfactory boys to 
be found, and we would advise our help-hunters to look 
for them, and not to be discouraged too easily. ''If at 
first you don't succeed, try, try again," is a good adage to 
put in practice here, both with regard to the dish-washers 
and cooks; perseverance may reveal a treasure, rare as 
treasures always are. 

As might well be anticipated, the code of morality here, 
as elsewhere, does not stand high among the majority of 
the colored race ; and this fact, with all its consequences, 
the housekeeper must be prepared to face as an irremedia- 
ble evil, and make the best of it. 

Their ideas of some very important subjects are fairly 
and humorously illustrated by the following, taken from a 
current issue of the great Florida daily. The Times Union, 
of Jacksonville — an actual occurrence : 



HOUSEHOLD HELP. 359 

"Late yesterday afternoon a colored man went into the 
county clerk's office, and finding Mr. B. in charge, asked 
for a marriage license. The usual questions Avere asked 
him by Mr. B. as to the age of the woman he wanted to 
marry, and if her former husband was dead or alive. 

'' ' She's been divorced,' replied the colored gentleman. 

" 'Well,' replied Mr. B., knowing as he does that fre- 
quently negroes separate without going through the form 
of getting a divorce, ' have you got a certified certificate 
of her divorce? If not, I can not issue a license under 
the law until you get such certificate from the clerk of the 
county she came from.' 

''The negro rej^lied in the negative, and went out in 
search of the woman to see if she had a certificate of di- 
vorce, being considerably wrought up. She went into the 
office with the man and was asked if she had the required 
certificate, to which she answered in the negative, when 
Mr. B. refused to grant the license. This angered the 
woman, and she railed out at Mr. B, : 

" ' I guess I knows dat I hab a 'vorce, and kin prove it, 
kase I hab had four childruns since I quit my husband/ 

" She thought that this statement would clear things up 
with Mr. B. Notwithstanding the children, the license was 
again refused, and the unhappy couple took their depart- 
ure, a wiser but a badly disappointed pair." 

We have now said enough to reveal the condition of 
household help as at present found in Florida, with rare 
exceptions. 

In the " old regime '' the South was famous for its good 
cooks ; the wives and daughters of the planters vied with 
each other in making their homes attractive. They were 
wise in their generation and knew the royal road to a man's 
heart, so they taught the most promising of the slaves how 
to cook, and allowed them to do nothing else. Hence, with 



360 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

good teachers, their whole time, energy and thought, given 
up to the business of their lives, and with an unlimited 
amount of that practice which alone ''makes perfect," it 
is not to be wondered at that the genuine old plantation 
cooks excelled in their art. 

But after the new regime set in these cooks were scat- 
tered abroad, and there remained no one whose interest it 
was to train up the rising generation in the way of the 
''good cook." 

The Florida State papers are full of horticultural dis- 
cussions and plans for the furtherance of fruit culture, 
crops, freight rates, railroads, politics — every thing that 
concerns the sterner sex ; but all the time there is one nu- 
merous and powerful class of their readers whose pressing 
needs they ignore almost entirely. 

The question of more help and competent house servants 
for the Florida home is a grievous one, and bears heavily 
on every frail, educated, refined wife and daughter in the 
land, and should be earnestly heeded by every husband 
and father, even if only from the selfish considerations 
which actuated a certain German we once heard of. 

He had paid a housekeeper for some years, and finally 
married her, explaining that he did so because he had 
found out that " A vife is cheaper dan a vomans ; you has 
to pay de vomans to do sometiuks ; but you no has to pay 
de vife to do ebery tinks." 

We could point out to-day several men, who call them- 
selves gentlemen, who not only leave their delicate wives 
without even the poor help that might be secured, but also 
expect them to cook, wash dishes, and wait on all the com- 
pany it may suit their royal will to bring into the house, 
and to cook and wash dishes for the colored laborers whom 
they hire to do their ov;n w^ork for them. 

Such men as these will ultimately discover, as the old 



HOUSEHOLD HELP. 361 

German did, that '*a vife is cheaper dan a vomans," and 
that a mother's love and care can not be duplicated for 
their children. 

Out-door labor can be supplied readily enough. There 
are very few colored men who can not plow, chop wood, 
and readily earn the wages asked, from $15 to $20 a month. 
But, as we have seen, the in-door work wears a far differ- 
ent aspect : it is a problem that presses for a solution. 

In Florida are thousands of housekeepers crying out, 
" Give us servants, or we die !" and in the frozen, crowded 
North and East are other thousands of intelligent, capable, 
respectable young women, crying out, ''Give us work, or 
we die ! " — American girls, the daughters of hard-working 
farmers or mechanics, who would fain help themselves and 
their parents if they could, who are quite willing to "go 
out to service," but whose better educated and more refined 
tastes shrink from close social contact with the rougher, 
uneducated, foreign class of servants, who at present have 
almost a monopoly of such work at the I^orth. 

Now, here in Florida we have just the very homes they 
are looking for, Avhere the work is not too heavy, and where 
they would stand " alone in their glory," entirely free from 
any possible contact with the ordinary Northern servant ; 
and how more than welcome would be the work of their 
neat, deft hands to the discouraged, overworked, worn-out 
housekeeper, who has been compelled to be "all things to 
every body" in the household. It is just this latter point 
that makes it so hard : not a wife only, not a mother only, 
not a chamber-maid only, not a maker and mender of gar- 
ments only, not the caterer and care-taker only, not the 
cook and dish-washer only, but all these things combined. 
But how to bring them together, these two classes, who so 
sorely need each other, yet are blindly groping in the dark 
along two diverging roads ? 



862 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

We have thought much and seriously on this subject, 
for it deeply concerns the welfare and the happiness of ev- 
ery refined household in Florida ; nay, even the very life 
of the delicate wife and mother, whose strength is not equal 
to the unaccustomed strain of "doing her own work," with 
all that it entails. 

And we would respectfully submit for the earnest con- 
sideration of our Florida readers, the outcome of our med- 
itations, in the hope that some one can suggest a better 
plan, and that it may be acted upon with all the energy 
and promptitude that the emergency demands. 

In every county of the State there is, or will shortly be 
a Fruit-growers' Association, and the great majority of 
their members are husbands and fathers, who should cer- 
tainly have the welfare of their families at heart. 

Florida has also a State Fruit-growers' Association, and 
a Farmers' Alliance. 

Let these, as bodies already organized and in working 
order, take this matter up and look into it until they fully 
realize its vital importance, Jiot only to the community at 
large, but to each one of themselves as individuals; and 
then let them act promptly and efficiently in their oflScial 
capacities. 

Let these associations select as their agents, in each of 
the larger cities of the North and West, a well-established, 
thoroughly reliable Labor Bureau or Intelligence Office. 

Having accomplished this, the preliminary step, let them 
notify the various County Associations that the secretary, 
or some other official specially appointed for the purpose, 
will receive and forward all applications from communities 
or families in need of servants. 

The County Associations, in their turn, should publish 
in their local papers and at their meetings that they stand 
ready to receive such applications, not only from their own 



HOUSEHOLD HELP. 363 

members, but from auy responsible parties in their county, 
and that terms of service, qualifications, and wages offered, 
should be distinctly stated in all such applications, and 
guarantee of good faith given. 

Then, if the agents appointed in the North and West 
would advertise largely in the cities and country towns, as 
Florida Service Bureaus, the problem of competent help, 
not only in-doors but out-of-doors, would be solved. 

The seeker and the sought would be brought together ; 
thousands of needy, deserving persons, singly, or in fami- 
lies, provided with comfortable homes, and the life of the 
weary Florida housekeeper relieved of its worst trials and 
tribulations. 

Of course there would be many points to settle, as to 
fees paid by applicants for servants, transportation for the 
latter and other necessary expenses; but these could be 
easily and smoothly arranged by the several associations 
acting together. 

There is one point, however, that should be fully under- 
stood by both parties, the employer and the employe, for 
without such clear understanding from the outset, discon- 
tent and insubordination on the part of the servant are 
very likely to ensue ; several such instances have come 
under our own observation. 

The trouble is just here. When white servants, whether 
men or women, see neighbors whom they recognize to be 
no more educated or refined than themselves received as 
guests of the family, they are apt to rise up in rebellion 
and claim the same treatment for themselves. 

They can not see that though they may really be the in- 
tellectual suj3eriors of the rough neighbor, whose ways are 
not as their ways, yet the social status of the latter is dif- 
ferent, inasmuch as a land-owner or householder, who is 
free to come and go of his own will, ranks higher than the 



364 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

hired servant in the house of the employer, to whom duty 
and obedience are due. Hence, trouble crops up, unless 
the servant is unusually reasonable and hard to spoil. 

We know of one instance, Avhere a man and wife were 
brought to Florida as servants ; the man had been a small 
farmer and gardener, the woman had been brought up as 
a servant, and had been such in the family of a friend of 
their employer in the North. Many of the neighbors in 
their new home were of their own class ; but a new coun- 
try and sparse settlements are great levelers of "class," 
and when these servants saw people "no better than them- 
selves" received as guests, they rebelled, and finally, when 
the humbler neighbors called on their mistress, they were 
either turned away from the house without the knowledge 
of the latter, who was an invalid, or else were invited into 
the kitchen and detained there under the same circum- 
stances as kitchen company. 

The result was the sore-offending of the neighbors, who 
were led to believe they w^re so treated by orders of the 
" grand folks." 

And finally admittance to the family table being refused, 
the husband and wife helped themselves from the dishes 
about to be placed on the table, and sat down to their 
meals at the self-same moment that the family sat down to 
theirs — " no second table for them ; no, indeed ! " 

' ' Up North " they had never dreamed of claiming equal- 
ity ; but here, with superior education and habits to many 
of the neighbors, who were treated as equals by courtesy, 
they became demoralized, till finally, when patience ceased 
to be a virtue and they were dismissed, they went about 
slandering the kindest, most considerate mistress that serv- 
ant ever had, as well as her friends before mentioned, whom 
the woman had formerly served. 

So let this point be fully set forth, that the white servant 



HOUSEHOLD HELP. 365 

engaging to serve in a Florida home will be well and kindly 
cared for, but must be content to occupy the same status 
that he or she would occupy under the same conditions in 
the Korth, and not claim the privileges of a family guest. 
This is a trouble that will gradually remedy itself as the 
number of white servants in the State increases, and, until 
that desirable period shall have arrived, the method we 
have outlined above must be applied. 

For those who may prefer foreign servants, or desire to 
settle families or colonies near them, to serve as such on 
occasion, the Commissioners of Emigration of New York 
hold the door open. 

The emigrants land at Castle Garden, New York, and 
here is established a Labor Bureau which finds employment 
for the thousands of emigrants who arrive in the United 
States without definite plans or destination, who desire em- 
ployment, yet do not know how to obtain it. 

Every year this Bureau settles thousands of house ser- 
vants and farm hands in good comfortable homes. In 1885, 
for instance, it found employment for over fifteen thou- 
sand, over six thousand of whom were women, and here too 
Florida may find a partial solution of this labor problem. 

Few Catholics, however, can be induced to make their 
homes in this State at present, because there are very few 
Catholic churches. 

The wages usually contracted for range from eight to 
ten dollars a month for house servants, and from eleven to 
fourteen dollars for the farm hands during "the busy sea- 
son," and this is always in Florida. The employer usually 
pays the transportation charges. 

An application addressed to the "Labor Bureau, Castle 
Garden, New York," stating exactly w^hat is wanted, and 
the terms offered, will seldom fail to find satisfactory reply. 



366 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 

i 

Servants are by no means the only trials encountered by 
the Florida housekeeper, any more than by her sisters in 
other sections. 

There are some tribulations incident to all housekeeping, 
and others incident to country homes only, that is, to any 
extent. 

Foremost among these are the numerous, all-pervading 
tribe of insects. 

City housekeepers Usually are comparatively free from 
them ; but all country housekeepers are more or less an- 
noyed by them during the summer season, and as, in Flor- 
ida, this season practically includes three fourths of the 
year at least, of course the Florida housewife is seldom 
entirely free to lay down her weapons and rest from the 
conflict. 

In the front rank of these household foes — these unin- 
vited guests — not only in size, but in the universal repug- 
nance they inspire, stand the roaches. 

They are not the mild little intruders of the cities of 
the colder climates, the '' water-back " guests of the kitchen- 
range, or the so-called Croton-bugs of New York City, but 
of another family altogether. We have seen them occasion- 
ally in the country " up North," but never in a city home. 

There are two distinct kinds : one, the larger, is a plump, 
well-conditioned fellow, with a shiny black coat ; he is fat, 
but, unlike the majority of stout people, very active and 
full of works ; whether good or bad we will not say, since 
we do not doubt that he acts uj:) to "his lights," which is 
more than can be said of the great mass of human beings. 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 367 

This black beetle-like roach has a peculiarity all his own, 
a strong one, by which you may know when he has met 
with an accident and become damaged in a collision, 
whether it be with your own foot or some other weapon ; 
when "crushed to earth," down-trodden and oppressed, he 
gives one the idea of having committed suicide by means 
of prussic acid, or oil of almonds, so powerful and all -per- 
vading is that scent on the air. 

We found out all about it, to our sorrow once, soon after 
our arrival in Florida. 

We had not yet become inured to the big black ''critters" 
that sometimes appeared suddenly from behind pictures, 
or brackets, or other dark places; and one evening, when 
the hall was filled with a band of serenaders, a member of 
our family instinctively attacked the enemy, and all too 
successfully, as a pungent odor of almonds presently in- 
formed the guests that a murder had been done. There was 
a good deal of fun made of the attacking party by those 
who had grown wiser from experience, and after that the 
big black was allowed to flee unmolested, especially if com- 
pany was "to the fore." 

The other roach is not a perfumer by profession, and 
hence less hesitation is felt in dispatching him at all times 
and seasons, provided you can catch him, for he is very 
like a flea, "you put your finger on him, and he isn't 
there." 

Though innocent of manufacturing perfumery, he is 
even more exasperating than his brother ; he is a " grow- 
er " of wings, and right well does he understand how to 
use them. He thinks nothing of making a cataj)ult of his 
wings, and dashing his long, slender brown body at full 
speed across the room, caring not at all whether he alights 
on the wall, table, book, or your own shrinking head or 
shoulders. 



368 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Possibly it is strange, but it is none the less true that 
some people object to such flighty familiarity, and hastily 
vacate the premises, or else energetically summon a braver 
or more stolid companion to '' kill that horrid flying roach." 
Many and msinj a time has the writer been thus summoned 
to the rescue, and usually returned from the fray with the 
triumphant exclamation, ''We have met the enemy, and 
they are ours." Not always though ; sometimes the chase 
is long, and finally unsuccessful. 

These flying roaches live more generally out of doors, 
than do their big black brothers, but often manage to force 
their way in-doors, especially if there is a bright light to 
attract them ; like the June or harvest-bugs of the North, 
they work their way into the house in spite of netted doors 
and w^indows, and no one can tell how they do it. 

The perfumer, however, while found out of doors also, 
in rotten wood or piles of trash, makes his home by prefer- 
ence in the house, in dark closets and corners, and sallies 
out at night on foraging expeditions. 

Meantime, during the day, he has a nice quiet luncheon 
in the closet, if it happens to be one in which provisions 
are carelessly left open, or in which clothes are hung. 

Just here is a point of which our new Florida house- 
keeper should take heed, and perhaps some of the older 
ones too, for we did not discover it ourself for several years, 
and there may be some who have not yet done so. It is 
this, that a great deal of the damage done to clothing while 
hung up in dark closets, must be placed to the account of 
these same roaches. 

Again and again we found clothing that was only usedi 
occasionally, yet frequently taken out, shaken, and aired, 
badly eaten here and there, sometimes the holes were small 
and round, again, large and irregular. We wondered how 
the moths found time to do it, when they were so often 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 369 

disturbed, and how it was that they continued so active 
even during the cool winter months ; for of course we laid 
all such transgressions at the door of the poor moths, al- 
though we very seldom found any of the silky-web traces 
of their presence. 

But by and by we began to notice that there were always 
roaches, young or old, close at hand, when we moved the 
clothing, and then we remembered that once upon a time, 
in Central America, we had been put to loss and annoy- 
ance in the same way, and that these same big black 
roaches abounded there even more than here. 

Then we watched more closely, and finally detected a 
roach in the act of eating a hole in a mohair skirt. 

One of the things that first led us to suspect the roaches 
were the real culprits was the fact that the holes were al- 
ways made where something had' been sjDilled on the gar- 
ment, and were large or small according to the spot ; and 
we knew that moths ai'e perfectly indifferent to such deli- 
cacies as soiled garments; new ones taste just as good to 
them, and they prefer wool, while roaches like the taste of 
" old clothes" and are indifferent as to whether their delec- 
table dish be served up on silk, wool, or cotton. 

That had been another of our puzzles, why moths, for 
the first time in our experience, should eat cotton and silk ; 
we had found no more trouble in keeping them at a dis- 
tance from winter clothing, regularly put up for the sum- 
mer, than we had in our Northern home. Little bits of 
raw cotton soaked in turpentine and placed here and there 
inside the packages and chests containing the clothing, 
served their purpose as eflfectually in the one place as in 
the other. Turpentine is the best safeguard against moths 
that Ave have ever known, the only one, in our experience, 
that has proved a perfect protection. 

We were a long while, as we have said, in unearthing 

24 



370 HOME LIFE IN FLOKIDA. 

the real culprits, and if we had only suspected the truth 
sooner the loss of many a valuable garment could have 
been prevented. 

Henceforth we fought the roaches more vigorously than 
ever, and kept a sharj)er watch on all our clothing not in 
daily use. 

We would not, however, lead our readers to infer that 
the roaches of Florida are much if any more numerous 
than in the majority of country places; we have seen them, 
smaller in size, to be sure, but greater in numbers, in sea- 
side hotels and other summer resorts, and sometimes even 
in farm-houses at the North. 

The peculiar features in Florida are their size, their 
wings, pungent odor, and their fondness for clothing and 
books. 

"Books?" Yes, even books, when placed on shelves, 
or in book-cases, and not frequently disturbed, will soon 
look as if they had the smallpox. The substance used by 
the binders in glazing the covers finds particular favor with 
the roach family, and they eat it off in spots here and there. 

Stout paper covers should be put on all books that are 
placed on shelves, if a fresh, neat cover is desired ; hand- 
somely bound books for the parlor may, however, be put 
out on tables without fear; we have never seen one, left 
out in this way, that was touched by roaches, they prefer 
shelter to work in. 

It was a long time before we discovered how to outwit 
the roaches and ants who foraged at will among our jellies 
and marmalades. 

No matter how securely we deemed them pasted or tied 
up in strong paper covers, they ate through it. Then we 
tried pasting strong muslin over the tops of the jelly glasses 
in addition to the paper; result just the same. Next, we 
soaked the paper in alum-water. That checked the indus- 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 371 

trious little ant, but the big biirly roach kept right on in 
the " even tenor of his way," and his way was a very bad 
and exasperating way for us. 

But there seemed to be no help but to let him do as he 
would with such of our jellies and sweetmeats as could not 
be provided tin or cork tops. 

At last, however, we had a happy idea. We had tried 
paper made stiff with paste, and paper without paste, and 
we had tried muslin pasted tight over the glasses, but all 
in vain; it remained to test muslin, pure and simple, tied 
over the mouth of jar or glass, without paste, white of 
egg, or any other addition. And this last exj)eriment, to 
our comfort and relief, proved effective, and all annoyance 
from this source ceased at once ; the addition of a paper 
cover under the muslin excludes all dust, and, if they are 
kept clean, no speck of the sweetmeat allowed to touch 
them, both roaches and ants will pass them by in silent 
contempt. 

No Florida house need be "overrun" with roaches. 
There are several effective ways of waging w^ar on them 
and keeping down the enemy, and no more annoyance 
need be experienced from their presence than one has been 
accustomed to in the old home. 

Clean out the closets every three or four months, and 
dash plenty of scalding water over the shelves and into 
the cracks between the boards, if there are any. It is far 
better to see that there are no cracks there to form a harbor 
for your enemies. Even if the house is only a box house, 
and plaster or building-paper can not be afforded, we would 
at least urge that the closets should be lined with the latter ; 
it would save far more in work and worry than it would 
cost in money. 

In the mean time, between the scalding visitations — and 
here " mean time" designates all the time — keep powdered 



372 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

borax and sugar mixed together, standing about on the 
shelves and in the dark places ; the lids of the round wood- 
en match-boxes are very handy for this purpose. Roaches 
will not eat borax alone, bat when sugar is mixed with it 
they certainly do, notwithstanding some statements we 
have seen to the contrary. We have seen them eating it, 
have seen them sauntering slowly along afterward in a 
weary, don't-care sort of manner, very different from their 
usual lively gait, and a little later have seen them calmly 
reposing on their shiny backs, their once active legs folded 
over their bosoms in a pathetic way, that ought to have 
made us sad, but we are fiun to confess had rather the op- 
posite effect. 

So we know that the combination of borax and sugar is 
a powerful weapon, and as it is not injurious to children 
or pet animals, and is neat and cleanly to stand around on 
the shelves and in the closets, we would advise its being 
kept there all the time, in preference to any other of the 
numerous mixtures recommended for the same purpose, 
although we know two of them, "Sure-pop" and "Rough 
on Rats," to be good ; but these, the latter especially, must 
be carefully handled, as they are poisons. 

Persian insect-powder, occasionally blown from the little 
insect-powder guns that are sold by every druggist, cost- 
ing about fifteen cents, is also very effective, puffed about 
in closets, bureau-drawers, and book-cases. 

Well, we have dwelt long enough among the roaches ; 
let us pass on to the other " insect pests," that Florida's 
foes love to elevate into veritable bug-bears. 
^J "Fleas?" Yes, of course there are some fleas. Did 
you ever see a country home where there were not at some 
seasons more or less fleas ? We never have, at least ; nay 
more, we have seen more fleas in New Jersey than we have 
ever seen in Florida. 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 373 

They are not the scourges that many are led to believe. 
During our nine years' residence in Florida we have been 
only very occasionally annoyed by fleas, and then only for 
a short time continuously. 

For the major part of the year we would not even know 
that there Avere such creatures in existence, did not our 
memory serve to remind us of the fact, and during the 
very height of flea-life (the spring months) an occasional 
warm kiss from flea-lips is the height and breadth of their 
offending. 

The worst of a flea is his ubiquity : he gives you a nip, 
you " put your finger on him, and he is n't there ; " no, he 
is somewhere else, hard at work, looking up another nice, 
tender place for a second bite. You rub and scratch, and 
he immediatly proves his non-relationship to a leopard by 
changing his spots ; he changes them often, with bewilder- 
ing frequency, and 

*' The wonder was, and still the wonder grew, 
That one small" flea could so much damage do. 

But when one has looked into the mysteries of flea-life, and 
has learned that it takes him but half a minute, or less, to 
digest the delicate drop of blood he robs you of and get 
ready for another, the wonder ceases, and it is easy to under- 
stand how one flea is just as good — or as bad — as a dozen. 

But he has a conqueror, before a puff* of whose breath 
he lies down and dies very quickly. Shoot him with the 
insect-powder gun, and you will have no further trouble. 

Does he creep into the bed and nip your toes until they 
feel as if you had been v/alking in a bed of nettles ? Put 
the little gun beneath your pillow, and puff" the poAvder 
down under the covers ; that Avill change the direction of 
his energies and terminate speedily the base attack on your 
understanding. 



874 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Does he crawl up your sleeve, or down your back, and 
adorn you with a cluster of lumps more pronounced than 
pleasant ? Then shoot him once, again ; let but the tiniest 
atom of the powder touch him, and his race is run. 

So, even if the fleas ever do become troublesome, as they 
do sometimes in some sections, no one need dread them 
very much ; keep the insect-powder and gun on hand for 
use when wanted, and the enemy is easily routed. 

The powder used to be very expensive, and then its free 
use was a serious matter ; but now that the pyrethrum is 
raised in the United States it has become much cheaper ; 
instead of one dollar per pound, which was charged for the 
imported, we have recently seen it placed on sale by gro- 
cers and wholesale druggists at thirty-five cents a pound. 
It should be kept in light jars or bottles, and, when genu- 
ine, is so powerful that it will admit of being mixed with 
one third its bulk of flour, starch, or some other powdered 
medium, and yet be entirely effective. 

Whether at home, North or South, in hotels, or in trav- 
eling, we would advise as a constant companion and fre- 
quent "friend in need" the little powder-gun, w^ell loaded 
for use. Those who have not tried it can not conceive 
how much it adds to one's comfort, nor hoAv much better 
one can sleep if a few puffs of powder are sent abroad 
among the bedding of the sleeping-car or steamer berths 
before stepping into them. 

It is charged by some that the presence of dogs or cats 
in the house involves the presence of fleas also. That this 
is a '' true bill," so far as dogs are concerned, can scarcely 
be doubted, unless, indeed, the animal is a pet and is fre- 
quently combed and washed. Fleas love dirt, and will 
breed industriously in the fur of a dog, if allowed to work 
their own sweet will ; then, of course, the result is an ex- 
cess of population, and internecine wars, during which the 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 375 

weaker are driven beyond the home borders to seek their 
living, just exactly on the same principle that the crowded 
European countries send their excess of population over to 
the United States to seek new fields for their enterprise. 

And the enterprise of the flea family certainly exceeds 
that of the majority of the human family: they believe 
that the world owes them a living, aud they take it wher- 
ever they find it. 

But though this is a true bill that dogs do scatter fleas 
about the house, it is equally as true in other places as in 
Florida. 

But as to the charge against cats in the household, we 
must file a demurrer. Cats, without exception, are the 
neatest and most cleanly of all animals, and one that is 
made a pet of and allowed the run of the house, will give 
its owner no trouble by importing fleas for general distri- 
bution ; it will shelter very few in its clean, soft fur, and 
those few will stay at home. We have proved this fact 
thoroughly. 

But fleas do love kittens, we must confess ; nice, tender, 
plump little kittens are tid-bits for their delectation, and 
they make the most of their chance. 

But even here we can exclaim, "We have met the ene- 
my and they are ours." 

During our residence in Florida we have "raised" sev- 
eral kittens, and the flea problem soon attracted attention, 
for the out-dwellers of the sands at once scented the little 
furry lumps awaiting them, and flocked to the feast. 

We put our thinking-cap on our head, the kittens on a 
blanket, the roughest, most fuzzy blanket we could find, 
and then we puffed insect-powder over the kittens. How 
they kicked and sneezed ! And how the wicked fleas fol- 
lowed suit as to the kicking, and directly dropped off* on 
the blanket, and crawled languidly into the midst of the 



376 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

fuzzy nap — to take au eternal nap themselves. Some were 
lively enough at first to try to jump. We had anticijoated 
that ; hence the blanket. The harvest of dead fleas reaped 
from the kitten-field was wonderful. 

About once a week, while the kittens were young and 
tender,^we repeated this treatment, and soon it was curious 
to note the difference in the disposition of the two kittens, 
just as much as we see in two human brothers. 

They very quickly learned what the blanket and powder- 
gun portended. One, a glossy black fellow, with a snowy 
breast, would begin to kick and cry the moment he saw 
them, and we had no little trouble to hold him without 
hurting him, until his enemies were compelled to vacate 
the premises ; the other one, a handsome buff" and white 
kitten, seemed to understand, almost from the first, that 
there was no use in struggling — in fact, he made a virtue 
of necessity, instead of starting to run at the sight of the 
little gun, he would deliberately sit up on his haunches, 
droop his forepaws, shut his eyes, and wait to be shot with 
the powder,''and then, when this infliction was over, lie 
down on the blanket and let himself be turned over and 
over without a struggle, a very personification of meekness. 

By this simple method we kept the enemy under, even 
when a kitten feast was in view, and as the latter grew 
older the fleas became so very scarce that we omitted the 
powder altogether. 

Dogs, if unwashed, and above all razor-backs, if allowed 
to approach near the house, will undoubtedly set free more 
or less fleas to torment its inmates ; but a clean, dainty cat, 
never. 

So we pass by the flea as giving but little annoyance in 
most localities, although in most of the towns, especially 
in the stores and hotels, they are apt to be more numerous 
than elsewhere ; private houses, especially those in the coun- 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 377 

try, can well afford to laugh at their visits, above all when 
armed with the gun that shoots powder and kills without 
a bullet. 

We pass by the flea, then, and pursue our investigations 
in another direction, looking next at an insect that causes 
far more annoyance than the Avicked flea, not only in Flor- 
ida, but in many other countries, in every State in the 
Union, and even up in the far-away Polar regions. 
\/ Mosquitoes, of course. There are some places in Flor- 
ida where these tantalizing songsters are as numerous as 
they are in many of the coast regions or swamps of the 
sister States, and that is saying a great deal ; but, again, 
there are other sections, notably in the high, inland pine 
regions, where they are practically unknown. 

Just as they are North, South, East and West, during 
the summer season — troublesome after dark, when one sits 
out on the porches — so are they in Florida as a rule ; this 
thing we know, we were more annoyed by mosquitoes in 
our Northern village home, than we have ever been in our 
far South home. 

With ordinary mosquito-bars in the windows, and wire- 
net doors to keep the insects out when attracted by a light, 
and with a net over the bed, the "mosquito nuisance" be- 
comes a very small one in the piney-woods home ; we have 
known it to be a much greater one outside of Florida. 

We wish we could say as much for the whole State ; but 
truth compels us to confess that we have heard of locali- 
ties in the hammocks and along the saw-grass shores of the 
large lakes, where double nets were used at doors and win- 
dows and over beds, and where the housewife, in making 
up her bread or cakes, was fain to wrap a gauze veil over 
her face for protection from a horde of hungry mosquitoes, 
who were anxious to make the most of her otherwise de- 
fenseless condition. 



378 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

We have heard, too, of large, light frames, with nets 
stretched over them, under which the family sat to eat their 
meals, to read, or to sew ; and these — were not in Florida. 

The coast regions of Florida are very attractive in many 
ways ; the dancing blue billows are glorious to look upon, 
and to sail over, the fresh salt air pleasant and invigorating, 
the fish and oysters and clams yielded up in generous abun- 
dance by the sparkling waters form no small items of home 
comforts ; but — the mosquitoes ! 

They love the salt air too. From the beautiful, health- 
ful shores of Charlotte Harbor comes the report, in re- 
sponse to our inquiries : 

' ' We must confess that for several months of the year 
the mosquitoes are very trying ; but we keep them at bay 
pretty effectually with nets in our doors and windows, and 
double nets over our beds. But this plague passes over; 
and all the rest of the year it is so enjoyable here that we 
forget the brief 'reign of terror' of the mosquito regime.^' 

And up from the Indian River country, on the opposite 
coast, a voice reaches us, the voice of a new Florida house- 
keeper : 

"We are passing through an age of mosquitoes; they 
are almost unendurable for two or three months ; yet we 
would rather have them, and do all our own work in addi- 
tion, than deal with a willfully-obstinate ' human,' such as 
we have often encountered in South Carolina." 

[It is not only the Florida "cooks" that try one's pa- 
tience, you see.] 

But, whether few or many, mosquitoes can be readily 
conquered by the use of the omnipotent insect-powder. 
Putting a little of it in a paper cone, and setting fire to 
it, is one way to clear a room, not only of mosquitoes, but 
fleas and flies ; puffing the powder toward the walls and 
ceilings is another way. 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 379 

Still a third method of driving off mosquitoes is to place 
a piece of gum camphor in a tin cup, and hold it over a 
lamp until a vapor begins to rise (don't let it take fire) and 
then wave the cup to and fro about the room until the air 
smells strongly of camphor. 

We have found both powder and camphor very effective, 
though we have fortunately seldom been compelled to re- 
sort to them, and never except from carelessness in leaving 
windows open and unprotected, with a bright light in the 
room. 

Even in the worst places in Florida, and during the 
height of the mosquito season, no one need be driven to 
the last resort of the natives of Lower Senegal. They go 
to roost, literally. During the several months when mos- 
quitoes are on the war-path in deadly earnest, the unlucky 
human beings of that region are taught their own insig- 
nificance, and are compelled to retreat before their tiny 
foe. They set up regular roosts, or platforms, built on 
high forked saplings, reached by ladders, and floored with 
branches, and under these lofty platforms perpetual fires 
are kept burning ; here the poor people have to live night 
and day, constantly enveloped in a dense smoke. 

Squatted on their roosts they receive their friends during 
the day, passing hurriedly from one roost to the other, and 
never venturing out of range of the smoke, least they be 
eaten up alive ; at night they stretch themselves on their 
platform, and sleep in the midst of smoke and warm air, 
with the stars above them and a fire below them. Query : 
Suppose the children should roll out of bed ? It would be 
something like, " out of the frying-pan into the fire," would 
it not? 

And now, in bidding farewell to the mosquito question, 
we will quote from "Sketches of Travel in Singapore, 
Malacca, Java," by a well-known German traveler, F. 



380 HOJIE LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Jager — an extract that will be found very useful to all 
hunters, whether Florida or otherwise, since they are sure 
to invade the haunts where mosquitoes ''most do congre- 
gate." 

' ' A tincture prepared by macerating one part of Pyre- 
thrum roseiim in four parts of dilute alcohol, and, when 
diluted with ten times its bulk of water, applied to any 
part of the body, gives perfect security against mosquitoes 
and all other vermin. I often passed the night in my boat 
on the ill-reputed rivers of Siam without any other cover, 
even without the netting, and experienced not the slight- 
est inconvenience. The ' buzzing,' at other times so great 
a disturber of sleep, becomes a harmless tune, and, in the 
feeling of security, a real cradle-song. In the chase, moist- 
ening the beard and hands protects the hunter against flies 
for at least twelve hours, even in spite of the largely in- 
creased respiration due to the climate." 

The same traveler also refers to the power of the insect 
(pyre thrum) powder over ants ; and, as these are another 
of our household foes, sometimes quite troublesome in their 
persistent visits to pantries and provision closets, we will 
quote our author once more. 

" Especially interesting is its [pyrethrum powder] action 
on that plague of all tropical countries, the countless ants. 
Before the windows and surrounding the whole house where 
I lived at Albay, on Luzon, was fastened a board six inches 
in width, on which long caravans of ants were constantly 
moving in all directions, making it appear an almost 
uniformly black surface. A track of the powder several 
inches in width, strewed across the board, or some tincture 
sprinkled over it, proved an insurmountable barrier to 
these processions. The first who halted before it, were 
pushed on by the crowds behind; but immediately, on 
passing over, showed symptoms of narcosis and died in a 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 381 

minute or two, and in a short time the rest left the house 
altogether. " 

And it is quite true, all this that Herr Jiiger has to say 
about the ants, as we have proved time and again in our 
provision and milk and butter closets. 

Insect-powder scattered over the shelves will keep them 
at a respectful distance, whether the marauders be the 
small red ants or the large brown ones, whose nippers are 
made on the model of a lobster's, and are quite capable of 
snipping out bits of flesh very neatly. The small ants 
carry red-hot pincers concealed about their persons, and 
use them on occasion, when disturbed at their meals or 
otherwise offended ; step into one of their dwellings while 
digging or weeding, and you will find out all about it. -' 

Nevertheless, we were quite as much annoyed with ants 
in our Northern country home, as ever we have been in 
our Southern. 

If you have in your store-room a barrel of sugar, and 
the ants make a raid on it, as they will (for Southern ants 
are not one whit more honest than Northern ones, and we 
have seen the latter thieving sugar) , all you have to do is 
either to sprinkle insect-powder on the floor around it, rub 
some in a circle on the staves, or make a chalk line an inch 
wide on the barrel, using the common granular chalk. 

Sometimes the large ants make a nice, cosy nest in a 
little-used box, or bureau-drawer, and fill it with shapely 
oblong eggs. Use the insect-powder among them, and 
they will each seize an egg and start ofl* on a journey to 
more hospitable regions. If the powder is good, they will 
stagger and faint by the wayside — and the place that once 
knew them shall know them no more. 

Now, as to flies : Our experience has been that they are 
not nearly so troublesome in the Florida piney-woods home 
as they are in most Northern homes. Of course they are 



382 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

more plentiful in the hammocks and on the coast, and also 
in the towns, where the well-filled stores invite them to 
come and to tarry. 

Probably the most annoying and tantalizing of all the 
insects of Florida — at least we know it to be so in the pine 
lands — is a tiny fly, called in local parlance a "gnat," al- 
though, properly speaking, it is a mosquito, and belonging 
to the mosquito family only, should be so termed. 

These little flies, miniatures of the ordinary house-flies, 
sing and buzz around one's ears, nose, mouth, and eyes, 
Avith a persistence worthy of a better cause, and an appar- 
ent aimlessness worthy of no cause at all. 

For, they don't bite ; or, if they do, we have not yet 
discovered it. We could feel more charity toward them 
if they tormented us while in search of their living. A 
mosquito stings — but it is an honest, legitimate sting ; he 
wants a good meal, and means to get it as best he may. 
But as to this "horrid little gnat," all that he wants, so 
far as one can see, is to torment and annoy, and this he 
does Avith a vigor and industry that must be pleasing to 
the Father of Evil, if he deigns to notice a little fly at all. 

We look back with a shiver of " holy horror" on certain 
experiences of our own in the cow-pen. 

Until we came to Florida we had dwelt in a great city, 
and had never so much as seen a cow milked ; but we speed- 
ily discovered that this was one of the many things that 
must be learned, self-taught too, unless we were willing to 
see our whole family deprived of that powerful factor in 
household comfort and economy, milk, with all its accom- 
paniments. 

As we have said, the art of milking was an unknown 
quantity to us, the cow-pen a foreign country ; but at 
least we had some ideas on the subject that were less eccen- 
tric than those held by a relative of ours when a little girl. 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 383 

Going with her sister one day to witness the interesting 
process of milking the "family friend" in the barn-yard, 
the milkmaid allowed the former, the elder of the two 
children, to try her hand at milking. 

Children are a good deal like a flock of sheep ; let the 
leader spring over an obstacle in his path, and though the 
obstacle be immediately removed, every one of the flock 
will leap at the spot — what one does, all want to do. 

So it was now: Mary, sitting on the milkiug-stool, no 
sooner resigned her seat to its legitimate occupant, than 
eight-year old Maggie insisted on having her turn. 

But the milker had no more time to waste, and the pe- 
tition was refused. Maggie pouted and withdrew, resigned ? 
Not a bit of it ! She merely retreated in order to outflank 
the enemy, and outwit her in her own stronghold. 

Two strong hands were raining down two milk-white 
streams into the beautiful white foam that was rapidly fill- 
ing the generous pail, when stealthily another hand, a tiny 
little hand, slipped in between the hind legs of the patient 
cow, and grasped a third teat. 

This was too much for the gentle animal's equanimity ; 
one hind leg sent Maggie in a backward summersault, the 
other deposited milkmaid, stool, and milk-pail in one con- 
fused heap on the ground. 

Mary rolled upon the grass in a convulsion of mirth — 
the astonished milker rose up, with the milk dripping from 
her head downward, and Maggie, the dumbfounded cul- 
prit, scrambled to her feet, sobbing, "I didn't know 'ow, 
'ow she cared, where you stood to — to milk her ; I did n't !" 

Now, we Avere more than eight years old when we first 
set foot in a Florida cow-pen, and we did know that a cow 
" cared where you to stood to milk her; " but further than 
that we knew little, except that it was a lesson to be learned. 
So we taught ourself how to milk ; and it was well we 



384 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

did, or the milk famine would have continued indefinitely, 
for we found that we could very seldom count upon help 
other than our own. 

Either our cooks, or "young genermeu," were unable to 
milk at all, or else we soon discovered that our cows and 
calves were being badly treated, the former kicked, the 
latter beaten wath heavy sticks until their slender little 
legs were swelled and bruised. 

So, in common humanity, we were compelled to retain 
our distasteful task three fourths of the time. 

We taught the Goddess how to milk, and as our pater 
accompanied her to the pen to guard the calves while she 
milked their mothers, this plan worked very well and to 
our great relief. 

But one day we bought a new cow with a beautiful 
shiny black coat. Now, whether it was this similarity of 
color, or some other cause of jealous antipathy, is to this 
day a mystery, but certain it is that so far from allowing 
the Goddess to milk her, Stella, the new cow, resented her 
presence in the pen so strongly that the moment she was 
permitted to enter the inner pen, where her calf was await- 
ing her, she would lower her head and make a dash for the 
Goddess, w^ho ''stood not on the order of her going," but 
went by rapid transit, whether through the bars or over 
the fence it mattered not at all, only so that she escaped 
from those threatening horns. 

We hoped for a while that Stella and the Goddess would 
eventually become, reconciled, but it was a vain hope. As 
it was at first, so it continued ; the entrance of Stella into 
the cow-pen was the signal for the hasty exit of the God- 
dess, over or under or through the fence. 

We were sorely tried, for it meant the giving up of a 
favorite cow, or the renewal of our cow-pen ball-aud-chain ; 
but for all that the sitrht was so ludicrous we had to laugh. 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 385 

We cliose the lesser of two evils, picked up our ball-and- 
chaiu aud went back into the pen, aud there, as we inti- 
mated awhile ago, before we wandered off into this by-way 
of reminiscence, we met our worst experience with "those 
horrid gnats," as we have often heard them called, and 
justly so. 

There, Avhen w^e were helpless, and both hands occupied, 
these tiny imps of aggravation delighted to sing their loud- 
est, and dance their liveliest around our ears and eyes and 
mouth. 

They may always be found, during their season, swarm- 
ing around the cows, and, perhaps resenting our presence, 
they nearly drove us frantic during the milking process. 
We used to wonder what particular attraction the coavs 
had for them, since we were satisfied that they never stung 
them ; but after watching them for a while the reason be- 
came plain enough, they were watching their chance to 
dine at the expense of the large horse-flies that rarely fail 
to be in close attendance on the cows. 

These large flies are experts at searching out nice, full 
veins and tapping them Avith their sharp proboscis, and, 
when the bright red drop comes forth in response, the tiny 
gnats sit down fearlessly in company with flies that are 
giants in comparison with themselves, and fill their trans- 
parent bodies to repletion. 

So, observing this impudent proceeding on the part of 
the little gnats, it was easy to understand their attraction 
toward the cow-pen and their close friendship for the cows, 
but why they should dance a "Highland fling" around 
the innocent milker remains to this day a mystery. 

But let not the new settler congratulate himself on the 
idea that these industrious gnats confine their persecutions 
to the vicinity of the cow-pen, and that if he avoids that 
devoted spot he will also avoid tho tribe of winged tor-- 



386 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

ments. There is nothing they like better than to assist at 
the family meals, especially if soups or meats are present 
on the board. 

They waltz hither and thither, whispering now in one 
ear, now in the other ; then they take a flying trip up your 
nose, and then come out to see what you think about it, 
and if you open your mouth to give your opinion on the 
subject (it is sure to be a very decided one too), you are 
just as likely as not to ingulf one or two of y©ur tormentors. 
With a diabolical glee do they dance and circle around your 
head, and up and down, over and into your plate. 

Now while this aggravating quadrille is in progress there 
are just two alternatives to be faced and made the best of, 
one is to go without your dinner — but we have never yet 
seen any one choose this alternative ; the other is to eat 
your food with a few gnats thrown in, nay, dropped in, by 

way of 

"Pepper and spice, 

"Which is [not] very nice." 

For there is no use in denying the fact that these omni- 
present gnats will fall into one's plate, with the practical 
effect, if not the intention, of ending their lives there ; the 
warm vapors arising from the food exert an intoxicating 
effect on the lively little torments, and as they waltz' over 
your plate, they reel and pitch and tumble about like the 
drunken flies they are. 

But for all this, we would not have our readers exagger- 
ate the annoyances caused by these little gnats. They are 
not so bad but that they might be much worse ; neither are 
they always, nor every where. 

Moreover, the netting, or cheese-cloth, which ought to 
be in the windows and doors of every country home in the 
North or South, in England or in Europe, during the hot 
season, will keep these little nuisances at bay almost en- 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 387 

tirely. These Ave might call passive defenses, but there 
are others more active. 

Here, again, the famous insect-powder comes to the fore, 
and a few puffs of it sent around the dining-room, with 
closed doors and windows, about fifteen minutes before sit- 
ting down to the table, will prove a very powerful w^eapon. 
Another remedy, that secures at least partial if not entire 
relief, is to rub spirits of camphor over the face and hands, 
or sprinkle it about the clothing. 

And just here, while considering this safeguard, it may 
not be amiss to step outside the house for a moment and 
go down into the stable. 

Those "dreadful little gnats" are there, too, waltzing 
wath diabolical glee around your horse's eyes, and all that 
poor, helpless animal can do in reprisal is to wink at them ; 
but, strange as it may seem, they do not seem one whit 
abashed by so mild a reproach. 

But, never mind ! there is a " friend in need " for the 
poor horse as well as for his master, and it is this relief 
that we have come to bring him, in the shape of an oint- 
ment, made of powdered camphor and lard, rubbed lightly 
around his eyes and forehead and nostrils; or you may tie 
a little bag filled with broken bits of gum camphor around 
his neck. Gnats object so strongly to the smell of cam- 
phor, that they will retire from its neighborhood in disgust 
— and so will mosquitoes. 

And now let us go back to the house and see what other 
trials and tribulations there aAvait the timid housekeeper. 
We use the word " timid" advisedly, because the few trials 
remaining to be noted are such as would be little heeded 
by one of strong nerves. 

We are done with the insect family, we have seen quite 
enough of them, and have happily learned that we are not 
entirely defenseless against their assaults. 



388 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

And now let us interview certain little creatures that 
are very aj^t to intrude into Florida homes, especially new 
houses, built upon land recently cleared ; such very little 
fellows, and innocent of all evil either in thought or deed, 
yet often creating the Avildest confusion amidst the femi- 
nine population. 

We ought to know all about it, for we have been hastily 
summoned time and again, even during this present writing, 
in a most energetic manner, to the rescue of our more nerv- 
ous home companions : 

' ' Oh ! oh ! here's one of those dreadful little frogs ! Do 
come and catch it! It Avill jump on me; come quick!" 
And then, with towel, or some similar weapon, in hand, 
we run, ready to pounce on the unconscious intruder as he 
hops serenely over the floor, or runs up the wall or window- 
curtains, intent upon one thought only, the sole object of 
his visit, which is to hunt for his dinner of flies and other 
small insects. 

" A frog?" Aye, even so ; a very mite of a frog, with 
a beautiful bright green coat, the brightest of bright eyes, 
the quickest of red tongues, and the most earnest resolve 
to catch flies and not be caught himself *' on the fly." 

He intends no harm, and he does none, except to the 
nerves of the new-comer who does not understand the per- 
fect innocence of his character and intentions, or to the 
timid sisters who can never get used to such terrible mon- 
sters as roaches, bugs, frogs, or lizards. 

There is nothing repulsive about his looks either ; he is 
one of the daintiest, prettiest little frogs to be seen any 
where; sometimes his bright green coat is spotted with 
olive, and a grayish yellow streak runs from the eyes to- 
ward the sides until it merges in the general green color 
of his coat ; he wears a very white shirt-bosom, edged with 
black, and a beautiful crimson brooch under his chin, whose 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 389 

existence no one would suspect till in a particularly happy 
moment he lifts his head and puffs out the gay brooch be- 
neath. Sometimes, too, his coat changes to a much darker 
hue, as though he had been essaying the lofty profession 
of a chimney-sweep, and a Florida chimney-sweep at that, 
such a dusty, untidy creature as he is at such times ! and 
do you know what it means ? 

Just this : that his coat has become old-fashioned, and 
he has ordered a new one, w^hich, unlike our own clothing, 
is fitted on underneath the old, and some fine day, if you 
watch closely, you will surely see this comical little fellow 
deliberately pulling off* his coat and — selling it to the old- 
clothes' man, do you suggest ? No, not that ; but — eating it I 

Our green friend is a true tree-frog, and right well does 
he know how to sing when a rain is coming, and at other 
times too ; he is a merry, happy creature, and can readily 
be tamed so as to come at a signal and eat flies or other in- 
sects from one's hand. 

He is not easily abashed nor diverted from his course. 
AVe know of one little chirper who for months made it a 
point of honor to take up his residence on the spout of the 
toilet pitcher in our bed-room, and he did not care at all 
how many " scares" he gave one occupant of the room, nor 
how many hasty excursions to the rescue he inflicted on 
the writer ; he merely twinkled his bright eyes at us, flung 
out his slender little legs in a futile leap as the enveloping 
towel descended over him, and then, when we dropped him 
out of the door, hopped indignantly away. 

But for all that it would not be long before we heard a 
voice, and such a voice, issuing from inside the pitcher, 
deep or shallow, according to the water-line within. If it 
came from "down in the depths," the resonance of that 
voice was wonderful, and reminded us of the famous bull- 
frog who ''lived in the well." 



390 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Sometimes he would go on a journey from his favorite 
pitcher into our study adjoining the bed-room, climb the 
desk, and hop serenely over books and papers, snapping 
up a fly or mosquito or marauding spider here and there ; 
occasionally he had even the impudence to sit on our hand, 
a proceeding not much to our fancy, for our merry little 
frog, ''Puck" we called him, was cold and clammy to the 
touch, and the tiny disks on his toes, which enabled him to 
cling to walls or ceilings, did not feel very pleasant. 

We had not the heart to injure the pretty little creature 
(he was very small, like all his family, hardly half an inch 
long), and therefore handled him very gently. But one 
day, alas for Puck ! a wicked trespasser, in the shape of a 
hen, saw him hopping under the window, returning from 
an out-door excursion to his beloved perch on our pitcher, 
saw him, pounced upon him and swallowed him ! 

It seemed almost ridiculous to feel regretful for a frog ; 
but we did. And to this day we hope the unfortunate little 
fellow made that lawless marauding hen uncomfortable by 
kicking. 

So you see this trial, the frog bugbear, is not very heavy 
to be borne. Even if a tiny frog does intrude once in a 
while, it is harmless, and only comes to help free you from 
troublesome insects. 

We have been ' ' taken in and done for " more than once 
in the course of our experience, but we Avere never more 
completely deceived than by one of these very same tiny 
green frogs. 

It was soon after our arrival in Florida, and during that 
transition period to which we have already referred, when 
the free razor-back citizens of the Flowery State were de- 
vouring all our young chicks who strayed outside the 
poultry-yard fence. 

A heavy summer shower was pouring down from the 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 391 

skies, such a slio\Yer as we have never seen elsewhere than 
in Florida and on the Isthmus of Panama — genuine trop- 
ical showers, solid sheets of rain that pelt and drench and 
blind the unlucky wight who is caught out in them with- 
out protection. 

In the very midst of the down-pour we heard the pitiful 
cry of a little chick, one that had evidently strayed outside 
the fence, and was not only in imminent danger of being 
drowned or chilled to death by the rain, but also of being 
caught by one of a " bunch" of razor-backs that had been 
seen close by just before the shower. 

We could not turn a deaf ear to that pitiful appeal for 
help, even though it was uttered only by a little chick, so 
we donned water-proof, rubber-cap, and rubber-shoes, and 
boldly went forth to the rescue, battling with wind and 
rain, and almost losing our breath in the struggle. 

We followed the sound of that mournful '' cheep, cheep, 
chee-eep," as best we could across a belt of sand-spur grass, 
across another of rough, plowed ground, and along the 
fence in the high grass, full of pity for the unhappy little 
wretch crying alone in the storm, wet, and frightened, and 
miserable as it must be. 

The sad ''cheep, cheep, chee-eep!" never faltered nor 
ceased, as we made our way toward it, and at last our per- 
severance, our errand of mercy, was rewarded — we found 
the poor little w^aif. 

It was not crouching in the grass as we expected, far 
from it ; the unhappy chicken was perched on a fence-post, 
and it was the queerest looking chick that w^e ever saw ! 
It had four legs, and it had pulled out or the wind had 
blown away all its feathers, if ever it had any, which Ave 
very much doubt, and was dressed in a smooth coat of 
bright green. 

And there it sat on the fence-post, utterly regardless of 



392 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

our dripping presence, singing its plaintive song of "clieep, 
cheep, chee-eep," and winking at us as if it knew all about 
it, and enjoyed the joke at our expense. 

The ''poor little chick" looked and acted so very like a 
frog, and seemed to chuckle over our "taking in" with 
such merry glee, that we just cast one reproachful glance 
at it and then retraced our steps to the house in a very 
dignified manner, a sadder, a wiser, and a very much wet- 
ter individual than the one who had set out so bravely to 
rescue an unhappy wanderer from an untimely death. 

We laughed then, and we often laugh now at the recol- 
lection of that fruitless expedition ; yet several times since 
then, w^e and others have been deceived (but never so to- 
tally) by the peculiar, chicken-like cry of the little tree- 
frog. 

Once — yes, we must tell it, for misery loves company — 
our honored mater was victimized too. 

We were then hatching our chickens in an incubator — 
the ' ' Perfect Hatcher " — and raising them in a brooder to 
which a glass run was attached. There were nearly two 
hundred lively chicks to be looked after and guarded, and 
sometimes, after the run was closed for the night, a pitiful 
cry outside would reveal the fact that one of the flock was 
shut out. 

This was the case one evening about dusk; the chicks 
were supposed to be all safely gone to bed beneath the 
warm, cosy "mother" inside the brooder, and so the run 
was closed in. Soon after, however, from outside, came 
the pitiful, mournful cry of a chicken in distress. 

"Oh ! we have shut out one of tliose poor little things ! " 
exclaimed the mater, and together we hastened to the res- 
cue. We unhooked the wire netting, and the mater, after a 
lively chase, finally picked up a little brown thing, that 
kept jumping against the glass sides. ' * Poor little wretch !" 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 393 

she cried, "how cold and wet it is; it must have tumbled 
into the drain — ugh ! ugh ! boo-ooh ! " And down went 
the "poor little wretch" on the ground with much more 
celerity than it was picked up. 

"It's — it's a — frog!" gasped the mater, "such a horrid 
sensation, I feel it crawling all over me! " 

We are afraid that instead of sympathizing with the 
victim of this terrible mistake, we were unfeeling enough 
to drop down on the grass and laugh till our eyes were dim 
at the picture of disgust before us, until the latter joined 
in the fun, and a chorus of small, startled voices in the 
brooder gave point and emphasis to our impromptu glee 
club. 

The "poor little wretch" in question, this time, was not 
one of the very small tree-frogs, but the large kind, for 
there are two, the larger ones are usually green, but have 
the power of changing their color at will, and as a rule, 
will be found matching in hue Avhatever object they rest 
upon, through all the shades of green or brown. 

And now let us pass on from this very froggy subject 
to another, but still within the "reptilean era." 

Lizards.: what a horror some of our Florida sisters have 
of these innocent, graceful creatures ! 

There is no harm in them, not a particle, even in the 
larger striped species that live altogether out of doors; 
they have no wish to attack any one, and if they had, 
could do no injury. In the first place, the very largest 
of them all are only a few inches in length ; in the second 
place, they have no teeth to bite Avith. The utmost they 
can accomplish in the way of defense, when attacked, we 
have seen them do when our pet cat has come to us crying 
for help, with a striped three- or four-inch lizard hanging 
to its under lip; it could not bite, but only pinch hard 
enough to sustain its own weight and to w^orry its assailant. 



394 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

But the slender little chameleon lizard can not do even so 
much as this. The nearest approach to it that it is capable 
of we saw once when two of them fell to fighting right 
under our very eyes ; they twitched their long tails about, 
ironed each other's coats with their toes for smoothing- 
irons, played "leap-frog or die" over one another, and 
finally locked their jaws together Avith so fierce a grip that 
a light touch from a twig made them fall apart. 

So you see what very formidable adversaries they are 
for the human family to encounter. 

They often venture inside the houses, seeking, like the 
tree-frogs, for flies, and it is curious to note how expert 
they are. They usually stay near the windows and remain 
perfectly quiet for five or ten minutes at a time, or until 
an unwary fly appears close by, then, with a dart like a 
flash, the chameleon proves that he can not only "change 
his skin," but "his spots" as well. 

Some people, many people, we fear, will try to catch a 
poor little frog or chameleon, and kill it. Now" that is a 
thing we can not understand. 

" It is more blessed to give than to receive : " what then 
is it to take violently that which it is out of our power to 
give back again? What good does it do, what pleasure 
does it give to any one, to destroy an innocent, harmless 
life, even if it does belong to "only a frog or a lizard"? 
It is theirs, not ours, and the same Hand created them that 
created us ; they come near us to help us in destroying the 
insects that really do annoy us, and we (some, not all of 
us) show our gratitude by robbing them of all they have, 
their innocent little lives. 

There was a chameleon, a graceful, pretty creature who 
wore sometimes a green coat, sometimes a yellow, some- 
times a brown, and at other times a spotted coat, w^ho used 
for one whole summer and fall to come regularly every day 



TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 395 

to sit on our study window and catch flies. It was a timid, 
fearsome little thing at first, but we caught flies several 
times and dropped them near it on the sill, and bye and 
bye it seemed to understand that we were friendly ; then 
we whistled to it and played soft music on a little mouth- 
harmonica. 

Chameleons like music, even such simple music as this, 
and it was odd to note how intently our unbidden but not 
unwelcome guest would listen to it, its tail moving gently 
when the music w^as slow and in quick jerks when the notes 
w^ere loud or fast ; its head would turn from side to side, 
its bright eyes twinkle, and ever and anon its slender neck 
was uplifted and an odd ruby-colored sack under its throat 
swelled out to a wonderful extent; and just so long as we 
kept up the music just that long would it remain in the 
same spot in rapt attention, especially so if we were whist- 
ling. 

But, alas! our pet chameleon went the way that one's 
pets do mostly go. After one unusually cold night, we 
found it lying stiff* and still on the floor beneath the win- 
dow, frozen to death, its bright eyes dim, its green coat 
turned to the sable hue of one in mourning. ' 

But ever and anon, during the warm, sunny summer 
days, other chameleons come darting in to see us, and even 
though they jump on our desk we find nothing alarming 
about them. They are very like one of our young "dish- 
washers," who naively confessed, regarding a cat that showed 
its fear of him, " I'm m-ighty more skeered of the cat, than 
the cat's skeered of me ! " 

And thus, trusting that we have laid the bugbear of 
" those dreadful little lizards," we will take a flight in the 
air, and see how it is about the busy mud-wasps who adorn 
our ceilings and walls after their own fashion. 

Veritable " busy-bodies " are they from the coming of 



896 HOME LIFE IN FLOPJDA. 

the warm weather to the end thereof, buzzing in and out 
of doors and Avindows, carrying little bits of soft mud in 
their mouths, sticking them up on the walls behind pic- 
tures, inside of closets, on the ceilings, or any where else 
they may fancy for the future birthplace of their larv2e. 
For that is the whole object of their mud-houses, and the 
skill with which they build them, with their numerous cube- 
like tunnels, is well worth noting, as is the ludicrous en- 
ergy they expend in kneading and pummeling the mud 
with their heads, and then smoothing it over with their 
feet. 

The places they choose for building-sites are sometimes 
exceedingly eccentric : glass jars, tea-pots, bonnet-boxes, 
trunks, old hats, clothing hanging long undisturbed, all 
these are commonplace and fade into insignificance when 
compared with the site chosen by one wildly eccentric wasp. 
No one would e\eY guess where it was, for it was located 
on in no less a place than the clustering curls surrounding 
the head of that devoted member of our family already 
alluded to, as having a horror of roaches, ants, fleas, frogs, 
chameleons, wasps, and others of their numerous family, 
and therefore receiving their especial attentions. 

This wasp, we might well call it a " crank," came flying 
in a window at which habitually sat our companion. It 
paused over her head, and then gently dropped on it the 
first bit of mud, the intended corner-stone of its j)rojected 
building. 

That was supposed, of course, to have been dropped by 
accident ; but when the same thing was repeated several 
times, and on successive days, that charitable view of the 
matter became impossible, and finally we were compelled 
in self-defense, or rather in defense of another, to shoot 
the persevering intruder with the omnipotent powder-gun, 
and that put an end to the projected "castle in the (h)air." 



TEIALS AND TRIBULxVTIONS. 397 

For, in all the great family of insects, there are none that 
succumb more quickly to a puff of the powder than the 
wasps. 

Whenever we hear the peculiar " buzz, buzz," that tells 
the story of the hidden, muddy piece of work in progress 
behind a picture, in a closet or corner, we go there straight- 
way, gun in hand, and send some of the powder flying, 
and if the least particle of it touches the wasp, as it inva- 
riably does, it ends the building of that particular mud- 
house. 

Neither is it difficult to keep the wasps at a distance ; 
the netting with which the doors and windows of every 
country house should be provided, whether North or South, 
will prevent their entrance, except perhaps a stray one 
now and then. 

Add to this that the mud-wasps never sting of malice 
'prepense, but only when a hand is actually placed on them, 
and it Avill be seen that they need cause but little annoy- 
ance to the housekeeper. 

The same is true of scorpions, of which so many persons 
have an exaggerated idea ; they are seldom seen at all, and 
then usually in hasty flight. Like the wasps, they will 
strike back if you lay your hand on them ; but are they to 
blame for that? our own laws justify self-defense. 

" Snakes? " Well, they can hardly be classed under the 
especial head of a housekeeper's trials, and yet they are 
often one of her first and most "awful" tribulations. 

We know of one who for weeks after being domiciled in 
Florida would not allow her children to leave the broad 
piazzas that surrounded the house, because of her fear of 
snakes ; but after watchiug for their dreaded appearance 
in vain, she came to the conclusion, arrived at by every 
one who lives in Florida and knows it as it is, that snakes 
are actually less numerous, especially in the pine lands, 



398 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

than they are in the fields and mountains of the Northern 
States. 

It is entirely a work of supererogation to confine one's 
self or family to the piazzas in order to avoid snakes, for, 
if they are about and take a fancy to visit one there, they 
can easily do so. 

How well we recollect, one day during our first summer, 
hearing an unearthly shriek, accompanied by a scampering 
over the porch. We rushed out, and there, dancing on 
the lofty summit of a tool-chest, with her skirts drawn 
tightly around her, we found our mater. 

** A snake ! there's a snake in the netting under my ham- 
mock. I stepped right on it. Oh ! I'm cold all over ! " 

We looked, and there, sure enough, was a poor, fright- 
ened black-snake, about three feet long, quite as much 
''skeered" as the mater was, and in a great deal more dan- 
ger ; it was struggling vainly to escape from the folds of 
the ample net which hung over the hammock and lay on 
the floor beneath it, a net used much more for flies than 
mosquitoes. 

There is no harm in these black-snakes, on the contrary 
they are our friends, and always on the watch to destroy 
those who are our real enemies. 

It is not so generally known as it ought to be, that there 
are two of our Florida snakes which ought to be protected 
rather than destroyed, the black-snake and the king-snake, 
the latter being much the larger of the two. 

Wherever they encounter a poisonous snake they give 
it battle, and, which is still more to the purpose, they inva- 
riably come out of it victorious. The utmost of harm that 
we have ever heard charged to their account (and we have 
never seen it verified) is that they occasionally steal eggs 
and young chickens. But even if this be so, what is this 
in comparison with the important service they render us ? 



TKIALS AND TRIBULATIONS. 399 

AVe would rather encourage, than otherwise, the presence 
of a few black-snakes on our premises, knowing full well 
that they will do good service in destroying such of our 
real foes as may be lurking in the grass. 

We have sometimes killed a black-snake — the largest we 
have ever seen in Florida in the pine lands measured four 
feet and was too slender to have swallowed any but a very 
young chicken — we have killed them, but it was with re- 
gret, and out of regard to others who could not conquer 
the innate aversion Ave all feel toward snakes. 

Only very seldom is a moccasin or spread-adder met 
with. These are both slow, sluggish reptiles, and we have 
frequently heard it asserted that even teasing with a stick 
will not provoke them to strike. 

The only real fear one need have with regard to these 
occasional visitors to our fields and groves lies in their slug- 
gish nature. Other snakes, seeing or hearing a person ap- 
proach, will dart away like a flash, these will merely lie 
still and look at you, and if you step on them they punish 
your temerity or carelessness. 

The spread-adder will warn you to keep your distance 
by uttering a low hissing that can not be mistaken, like a 
locomotive blowing off steam in the far distance. Three 
times only, during all our long years of residence in Flor- 
ida, have we come to close quarters- with the spread-adder, 
and each time it gave us the warning to "Beware!" and 
each time, also, we hastened away, and returned, exclaim- 
ing * ' Hoe ! " as we brought that handy weaj^on down upon 
the enemy's back, and then used it to dig a little grave for 
his remains. 

li es, in nine years we have encountered near our piney- 
woods home just three spread-adders and five moccasins, 
and in each instance we could say, with Commodore Deca- 
tur, ' ' We have met the enemy, and he is ours ! " 



400 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

With the simple, common-sense precaution of looking 
where you walk, no one need have any fear of snakes here; 
we have seen less of them, as an actual matter of fact, than 
we used to see during our summer outings at the North. 

And so we bury the much exaggerated bugbear of snakes, 
and with them close our list of "trials and tribulations" 
likely to be met with by the Florida housekeeper. 



MAKING THE BEST OF IT. 401 

CHAPTER XXV. 

MAKING THE BEST OF IT. 

If, during the perusal of the preceding j)ages, our read- 
ers have not come to realize the fact that the new Florida 
home and its surroundings must of necessity be full of 
changes from the old routine they have elsewhere been ac- 
customed to, then have we failed in our purpose. 

It is so much better to expect little and find more, than 
to expect much and find little, that we have endeavored 
to point out the disadvantages and drawbacks very plainly. 
There are, of course, many of these as regards mere phys- 
ical comforts and indulgences, in comparison with the sur- 
roundings of old settled communities; but, as compared 
with any other new country, the Florida home has very 
few, and none of them involving actual personal suffering 
such as must come to the Northern or Western pioneer, if 
only through the medium of the cold, bleak months that 
make up so large a portion of each year. 

That the mild, genial climate of Florida ofiers great com- 
pensation for many minor drawbacks in the new home, few 
will deny, and those who come, resolved to stay and make 
the best of things, until they can be improved, will find 
the "drawbacks" true to their name, inasmuch as tliey 
will retire further into the background, until finally the 
question will arise, "Where and what are they?" 

The settler, whether man or woman, who resolves to be 
contented and carve out a true home from such crude ma- 
terials as may be obtainable, will surely find the task com- 
paratively an easy one. The w^hole secret is in their 
starting right, and in coming here just as they would to 
any other State to settle. 

26 



402 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

To expect to find the same soil and conditions of life and 
society here as those left behind would be foolish indeed. 
No man will find money growing on the bushes along the 
roadsides, vegetables that plant and cultivate themselves, 
or orange trees that come into bearing in two or three years 
from the seed; neither w^ill he find desirable lands and 
bearing groves to be given away, as though of no value 
to the owner. 

The settler who is well-to-do and seeks a Florida home, 
not to mend his broken fortunes, but simply for his own 
or his family's health, will have no difficulty in finding 
plenty of beautiful, healthful, desirable places, located 
near the cities or transportation facilities, where every 
comfort and luxury can be procured ; but he will have to 
pay for these things just as he would any w^here else. 

If he wants to farm and "turn the soil" to his profit, 
he must study its nature and capabilities, learn the ways 
and means of semi-tropical products, and not be above 
taking advice from his neighbors, even though they may 
possess but little of the book-learning Avhich has served 
him elsewhere, but w^ill prove here an insufiScient guide. 

If he wants to go into business or procure employment, 
he must go about it exactly as he would "up North," or 
any where else : look out for localities where there is busi- 
ness to be done of the kind he desires to enter into, and 
then, having found it, advertise the fact that he is there 
on the spot and ready to supply the demand. 

These are the kind of settlers that Florida wants, as we 
have said elsewhere ; not tramps, here to-day, there to-mor- 
row, nor wild enthusiasts mounting high on a hobby-horse, 
and then, after a brief gallop, plunging headlong into the 
"Slough of Despond." 

We have recorded enough in these pages, and in those of 
a former work ("Florida Fruits and How to Raise Them"), 



MAKING THE BEST OF IT. 403 

to prove that our beautiful State has Avonderful capabilities 
of climate, soil, and varied resources ; but it needs money, 
pluck, common sense, and common industry to develop 
these advantages. Men and women must work for their 
living here as elsewhere, although here the chances for 
present comfort and ultimate success are greater than in 
any other State in the Union, and opportunities for the safe 
and profitable investment of capital — not only moneyed 
but physical capital — can no where be excelled. 

No industrious man of good habits and ordinary health, 
however lacking he may be in " worldly gear," need be 
without a cosy, comfortable home in Florida, neither his 
wife nor his children. And here too a large family of 
the latter ceases to be a burden, for there is much they can 
do to help. 

The one tiling most needful is, the resolve to make the 
best of it, to accept one's surroundings Avithout discontent, 
to meet the changed condition of things in the new home, 
and gradually evolve comfort out of discomfort and order 
out of disorder, with patience, and without that constant 
fretting and repining which will wear out one's own life 
and throw a heavy cloud over one's w^hole family. 

Florida is pre-eminently a harbor of refuge, a shipyard 
where barques, beaten and battered on the stormy finan- 
cial seas, have put into port for repairs. These repairs will 
come in due time, and the ship Avill sail again "as good as 
new," if the ship-builder is industrious and tempers his 
tools with judgment ; but there must perforce be an inter- 
val of hardship and discomfort for the crew, and it has to 
be lived through somehow. The situation has to be faced : 
it would be a much harder one, remember, under the same 
circumstances in any other section of the country — it has 
to be faced, and there are two ways of doing it. The one 
is by perpetual and irritable complaint, fretfulness, de- 



404 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

spondency, and worry, which crushes all life, hope, and en- 
ergy, and makes home not a home, but a miserable prison- 
house, whose inmates would be thankful to flee if they could 
from the jailor to whom they are chained, and who makes 
their lives almost unendurable and cheerfulness impossible. 
The other way is to face the inevitable changes quietly 
and calmly ; to consider the blessings surrounding the new 
home rather than those left behind in the old ; to take each 
one of the present difficulties and shortcomings in detail, 
examine into cause and effect, and use whatever remedies 
may suggest themselves. If none can be found, why then 
let it go, and don't fret over it. 

As we have noted in previous chapters, it is upon the 
women of the household, those who have been heretofore 
unaccustomed to work, that the difference in their sur- 
roundings weighs most heavily. Take any city-bred lady, 
whether of America or Europe, one who has lived all her 
life with every convenience and comfort so close at hand 
that they have become as it were component parts of that 
life, set her down suddenly in any country home, in the 
midst of farm-work and rough, hungry farm hands, and 
leave her to perform all the work consequent thereon, and 
if she does not feel the yoke to be even more galling if 
borne near her old home, with its bleak climate, than she 
would in far-away Florida with its genial winters — then 
are we much mistaken. 

As a rule the wife and daughters of a farmer, be the 
scene of their labors where it may, live in a chronic state 
of weariness, and we are fain to say that a great deal of 
this is their own fault; and before turning finally from 
this phase of our subject we are going to have a little plain 
talk with our Florida sisters, both of the present and future, 
because we have seen again and again, and not alone in 
Florida, the wearing out and laying away of the wife and 



iMAKiNG THE BEST OF IT. 405 

mother, simply because she had not learned to sacrifice the 
lower things to the higher. 

First of all, we want to ask our sisters a few questions. 
When the plants are too thick in your flower-beds, what 
do you do ? Thin them out, of course. When a fruit-tree 
sets fruit too thick ? Thin it out again. Of course, that 
is the only proper thing to do ; common sense teaches that. 

Then why not apply common sense to something higher? 

Do you rise in the morning feeling worn and tired, as if 
you had just completed your day's work, and were more 
than ready to rest? 

Says a farmer, "If you should happen out our way, 
doctor, I wish you would just look in at my wife. She 
seems kind of out of sorts." 

' ' Ah ! What seems to be the trouble ? " 

" Well, seems as if she is n't so strong as she used to be. 
For instance, this morning, after she had milked the cows, 
and got breakfast for us men folks, and washed up the 
dishes and started in at the washin', she complained of 
feeling sort o' tired and weary like. I reckon her blood 
wants thinnin." 

Oh! blind man, blinder than a bat! " Her blood needs 
thinning! " Rather does it need thickening, and yours the 
"thinning." 

Some thinning is needed, it is true, needed at once, too. 
But it is the work, and not the blood, that must be thinned. 
AVife and mother, tired at noonday, tired at night, tired 
in the morning, w^hen you should be bright and buoyant, 
take heed ! 

Are you wasteful of food, of money? Nay, you are 
careful, you guard against waste; if the one is limited, 
you try to make the best of it ; if the other is scarce, you 
seek to make it go as far as possible by living frugally and 
cutting down every possible expense. 



406 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Now tell US, sisters, would you wear a silk dress in the 
kitchen to save a calico one ? Yet that is exactly what you 
are doing, and worse, when you are so frugal of food and 
money and so spendthrift of strength and life. The first 
two may be replaced, the latter never. 

It is all right to cut down expenses, when money is run- 
ning out too fast ; but your strength is worth money, and 
more than money ; yet you keep on wasting it as though 
you owned all the life, health and strength of the world. 

Cut down your work, thin it out ; search, and you will 
find any amount of it that had better be pulled up and 
castaway. Sit down and ask yourself, "How much of 
my toil is done for my neighbors? How many stitches do 
I take to be looked at and admired by others ? How many 
ruffles do I put on my little girl's dresses that other people 
may see them ? When one ruffle is neat and pretty, do I 
think the other two make her more comfortable? If I 
have a lot of fruit, I do not want to waste it ; but is it not 
better to do that than to waste my strength ? Is it not 
worth more than fruit. If I can myself w^ith the berries, 
stiffen myself with the jellies, evaporate myself with the 
dried fruit ; is all that true economy ? Is not my work, 
my guidance, my advice, worth more to my family than 
all the ruflftes and fruit put together ; and can I give them 
my services if I trample on my health, stew my strength 
to shreds, and get myself into a broil generally?" Think 
it over : these are homely similes, but significant ones. 

Keep clean for the sake of health and self-respect ; but 
if there is only a little dust here and there, and it is going 
to be ''the straw that breaks the camel's back" to get rid 
of that dust, shut your eyes and let it lie. 

Do what is necessary for comfort, but if you will lop off" 
all the unnecessaries, the concessions to Mrs. Grundy, there 
will be no trouble to thin out your work. 



MAKING THE BEST OF IT. 407 

*' Once upon a time" (our grandmother saw and told the 
incident) a fire broke out in a country town ; two or three 
houses were burned, many others were in danger. In the 
midst of the excitement an old lady, Aunt Patsey, she was 
called, ran out from one of the threatened dwellings, bear- 
ing under one arm an old cracked toilet pitcher, under the 
other the basin belonging to it. She ran here and there, 
at last darted across the street, and set her precious load 
down on our grandmother's door-step. ' ' There ! Thank 
the Lord, that's safe, any how!" she panted. Then she 
vanished, and directly was seen to emerge from her house 
again, bearing the remainder of that valuable toilet set and 
her comb and brush. Too excited to remember where she 
had deposited her first load. Aunt Patsey finally placed the 
second in the gutter, and sat down on the curb to guard it, 
with a satisfied expression on her face, and a murmured 
" Thank the Lord! " even though she saw her house, with 
all its valuable contents, burning to the ground before her 
eyes. For the time, crazed with fright and excitement, 
she was contented to have saved the old toilet set, where 
she might have saved the old family silver plate. 

Sisters, are all the Aunt Patseys dead yet? 

Learn ye to sacrifice the lower things to the higher. 

' ' Make the best of it " in this way, and add to the sys- 
tematic thinning out of household duties a resolve to be 
bright and cheerful, and to search out blessings rather than 
the reverse, and then you need not fear being unhappy in 
the new home, or finding its few drawbacks too heavy to 
be borne. After all they are only such as are found more 
or less in every country home where means or neighbors 
are restricted, except that the genial glow of a mild climate 
is always present in Florida. 



408 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

CHAPTER XXVI. 

HELPFUL HINTS. 

And now, in conclusion, let us point out some of the 
practical ways of making the best of whatever means and 
surroundings the Florida settler may possess. 

Taking it for granted, as is usually the case, that money 
is not plentiful, it behooves the settler to help himself 
without the expenditure of money, so far as it is possible. 

With a little skill and knowledge many things can be 
done and made at home, that are usually either dispensed 
with or obtained by hired labor which can be ill-afforded. 

First of all, let us see how the expense of hiring a painter 
can be avoided. In " Shoj^pell's Modern Houses" — a quar- 
terly magazine devoted to views and building plans for mod- 
ern dwellings, and of great value to intending builders, 
published by the Co-operative Building-plan Association, 
191 Broadway, New York, at $1 a volume — we find the 
following common-sense directions for 

THE AMATEUR HOUSE PAINTER. 

"For one who wishes to do his own painting, the best 
plan in most cases is to buy ready mixed paints, of which 
there are a number of good brands in the market ; he can 
select his colors from the sample cards furnished, or order 
them as specified by the architects. In this way he obtains 
the colors desired and avoids the difficulties of mixing. 

"If he prefers to mix the colors, thereby effecting a 
saving of money, he can have the pigments ground to the 
desired tints, then by adding the oil (raw linseed is the 
best) bring the paints to the proper consistency for using. 

"White lead is good to lighten any color, and also makes 
the best body for white paint and some other colors. 



HELPFUL HINTS. 409 

"When using dry lampblack, saturate it with spirits of 
turpentine and there will be no difficulty in mixing it with 
oil afterward ; no more turpentine should be used than is 
necessary to make a paste, as turpentine is bad for outside 
work. A small amount of lampblack is good to set the 
olive greens and make them durable. 

"It is important that the work to be painted be perfectly 
clean and free from grease, oil or tar spots. All knots 
should be covered with a coat of strong shellac varnish 
before priming. If the work is new let the priming stand 
a week or two before laying on the second coat. 

"The following will be found useful in computing the 
amount of paint required : 

" Quantities required to paint one hundred square yards : 
For priming, if tinted white lead is used, there will be re- 
quired twenty pounds of lead and five quarts of raw lin- 
seed oil. For second coat twenty pounds of lead and one 
gallon of oil. 

" If three-coat work is intended, the amount of material 
required for priming and completing the work will average 
fifty pounds of lead and two and a half gallons of oil to 
cover one hundred square yards, or about one half pound 
lead per square yard. As painting is sometimes measured 
by the 'square' of 10x10 feet (or one hundred square 
feet), we give the following rule for computing the quan- 
tities required, viz. , five pounds of lead and one quart of 
oil to the ' square ' for three-coat work. 

" When paint is already mixed and ready for the brush 
there is required one gallon per coat for each twenty-five 
square yards. 

" Putty for stopping nail-holes, etc., one half pound to the 

square, or four to five pounds for each one hundred yards. 

"In regard to the brushes required: It is economy to 

have enough brushes so that there will be one for each color, 



410 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

besides a few sash tools with which to touch up and for use 
in small spaces and corners. It is a waste of time and 
an annoyance to be obliged to wash or rub out brushes in 
chano-ino; from one color to another. No brush should be 
washed with soap and water ; it destroys its elasticity and 
usefulness. If water is to be used in cleaning a brush, let 
• it be well mixed with ammonia and used as warm as is com- 
fortable to the touch. If brushes are washed in turpentine 
or benzine, they must be cleansed from same and laid out for 
a little time to allow the spirits to evaporate before painting 
is resumed. Turpentine endangers the durability of paint. 

" One who does his own painting is not likely to be stint- 
ed in time, and consequently will not need to spend money 
for such large brushes as painters generally use. Brushes 
made with a selected quality of Russia bristles and bound 
with wire are considered the best, though there are very 
good brushes bound with cord or twine, 

"A very good kind of flat brush, like a kalsomine or 
whitewash brush, can be obtained, that answers quite well 
for painting or oiling shingles or large surfaces ; they are 
cheap and quite substantial, being bound in a 2:)atent rub- 
ber composition, and need no extra binding or ' bridling.' 

"For laying on the body colors a round brush, not less 
than 0000 in size, should be used, one for each color, also 
one for the trim." 

No better firm for the purchase of building supplies of 
all kinds, and oils, paints, varnishes, can be found than 
that of S. B. Hubbard & Co., of Jacksonville, Florida. 
Not every one is able to afford oil paints, however, and to 
very many the cheap yet durable paints given below will 
prove of great value. 

MILK PAINT. 

"The cheapest and best farmer's paint that I have any 
knowledge of," says a well-known agriculturist, "isnoth- 



HELPFUL HINTS. 411 

ing but sweet skimmed milk aud water-lime (cemeut) . The 
chemical union that takes place between the lime aud the 
caseiue of the milk probably produces the film of stone 
which endures the weather in this country for years. I 
built a building in 1859, or 1860, for a carriage-house, sta- 
ble, and granary, of well-sawed, unplaned lumber— stock 
boards one foot wide, battened with square, undressed two- 
inch battens— put two coats of this paiut on the body of 
the building, aud painted the trimmings (the base, cornice, 
door and window-frames) with peroxide of iron and oil, a 
reddish brown, and it was not until last year that I thought 
it needed another coating of the same, whicb cost me, for 
brown paint, oil, and puttiug on, $4.50 ; for skimmed milk, 
water-lime, and putting on, $3.25; total, S7.75. 

''The building is fifty-two feet front and twenty-four 
feet deep, and high gables with sixteen-feet side posts." 

The water-lime and skimmed milk are mixed together to 
a proper consistency to apply with a brush. This paint 
adheres well to wood, whether rough or smooth — to stone, 
mortar, or brick, where oil has not previously been used — 
and forms a very hard substance, as durable as the best oil 
paint ; any color may be given to it by using colors of the 
tint desired. If a red is preferred, mix Venetian red with 
the milk, not using any lime. It will look well for fifteen 
years, and is too cheap to estimate. 

ANOTHER DURABLE PAINT 

For outside work : Take two parts (in bulk) of water- 
lime, ground fine; one part (in bulk) of white lead in oil; 
mix them thoroughly by adding the best boiled linseed oil, 
enough to prepare it to pass through a paint-mill, after 
which, temper with oil till it can be applied with a common 
paint-brush. Make any color to suit. It is said that this 
will last three times as long as lead paint. 



412 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

FIEE-PROOF PAINT. 

Take six quarts of finely sifted slacked lime, one quart 
rock salt, and one gallon of water. Boil all together, and 
stir well ; when boiled take off the scum and dirt that rises, 
add one pound alum and eight ounces copperas, finely pul- 
verized, and mix in slowly, while stirring, twelve ounces 
powdered potash, and finally add four pounds wood ashes, 
well sifted. This becomes quite hard after it has been ap- 
plied with a brush, and will do for wood or iron. 

THE HOESE AND ITS ADJUNCTS. 

Among the very first j^urchases that should be made by 
the settler are a horse and a wagon. They are so nearly a 
necessity of Floi-ida life that they ought to be secured, even 
if some other desirable things must be sacrificed in order 
to obtain them. 

To undertake to make a grove, or raise vegetables or 
fruit of any sort, without a horse, is like trying to raise a 
heavy load with one's hands tied. And of little less im- 
portance is the wagon. Without it, how can the family pro- 
visions be brought from the neighboring tow^ns, a distance, 
most likely, of several miles? 

Without a horse and Avagon, the settler is compelled to 
wait upon the comings and goings of a neighborly neigh- 
bor, if such there be, or else all the family food must be 
carried in a basket on one's arm. We have seen that tried, 
and it Avas a terrible strain on a strong man to walk through 
the summer sun and yielding sand for four miles, two of 
them the return trip, with a heavy basket on his arm. 

No, the horse and w^agon must be bought, if within the 
bounds of possibility, even if the house has to be a little 
smaller or rougher, or the outside improvements less exten- 
sive in consequence ; neither the property nor the family 
can be proj^erly cared for if these two adjuncts are missing. 



HELPFUL HINTS. 413 

Horses, good, strong, sturdy horses can be purcliased in 
most sections of the State for from $125 to $150, large 
horses, either imported from some of the Southern or West- 
ern States, or the offspring of such, born in Florida. If 
the latter, they are thoroughly acclimated and there is no 
fear for their health, if they are treated with the consider- 
ation that should be given them, whether in Florida or 
elsewhere. If the former, ascertain, if possible, how long 
they have been in the State. It is running a risk to buy 
ahorse ''just brought over" the border, except, indeed, 
from Southern Georgia, whose climate and forage plants 
are so like those of Florida as to be practically the same. 

The time is not distant when the "Land of Flowers" 
will be able to boast of her horse as well a^ cattle ranches; 
and meantime she has already at least two reliable and ex- 
tensive breeders of trotting and running horses, Schrader 
Brothers and Captain Patrick Houston, both of Tallahas- 
see, to whom we have already referred as breeders of Dur- 
ham, Jersey, and Guernsey cattle. Then there are the or- 
dinary ''Florida ponies," a breed of horses rather smaller 
than those in common use at the North, where heavy draft 
animals are required, yet strong and sturdy, requiring less 
feed to keep them in good condition than do the larger 
horses. While less able to haul heavy loads than the latter, 
they have quite as much, if not more, endurance, and are 
well fitted for all the ordinary hauling and cultivation of 
the farm or grove, or for driving purposes. 

These Florida ponies can usually be purchased for from 
$80 to $125. 

Be certain, before concluding the bargain, that the ani- 
mal has been broken not only to the saddle and plow, but 
also to pull a cart or top-wagon. We have known more 
than one too-ready purchaser who found himself the dis- 
mayed owner of a horse who declined to pull cart or wagon, 



414 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

or, if all right on these points, would refuse to allow itself 
to be geared to a top-buggy ; occasionally they are not even 
trained to the plow. As a general thing they are broken 
to all these uses ; but it is well to be on the watch for the 
exceptions that "prove the rule." It all depends upon 
who trained the horses, and with what object in view ; for 
some unambitious or lazy owners are quite content to break 
their colts to the saddle only, depending on the older ani- 
mals for use on the farm and road. 

And now as to a vehicle. Strange as it may appear, 
there is hardly any other manufactured article, especially 
one in such common use, of which the majority of people 
know so little as to what goes to make up its true value 
as the every-day wagon or carriage. Considering their cost 
and the heavy amount of wear and tear they must neces- 
sarily endure, people are ver}^ careless, as a rule, in their 
purchases in this line, and there is too much of what we 
may call random buying of unknown irresponsible builders. 
To be serviceable and durable, nay, even to be safe, a ve- 
hicle, whether Avagon, cart, or carriage, should be made 
throughout of the best materials and best workmanship ; 
these can only be assured by purchasing direct from a well- 
known manufacturer who has a reputation to sustain, and 
hence, for his own sake, is sure to see that his name is con- 
nected only with honest, well-made articles. 

A large, expensive establishment, where thousands upon 
thousands of dollars are at stake, can not afford to risk the 
loss of the business on which so large an amount is depend- 
ent, and hence can not safely deal otherwise than honestly. 
We have seen so many badly built ' ' rattle-traps " in Flor- 
ida, so-called "cheap," but to our mind very dear, at $40 
to $50, that we have taken especial pains to look about 
among the old reliable firms for vehicles suitable for our 
sandy State — their first cost more than the sums named 



HELPFUL HINTS. 415 

above, but their ultimate cost far less. Aud we have found 
in the great manufactory of Bradley & Co., Syracuse, 
New York, two vehicles especially adapted for Florida 
use. One of these is a wagon, six feet in body length 
and thirty-two inches wide, aptly named the "Handy 
Wagon," ''because," say the manufacturers, "it is some- 
thing for the multitude, correct in principle, simple in con- 
struction, with great strength in proportion to its weight ; 
it hangs low and is adapted to a greater variety of uses 
than any vehicle ever introduced." 

Solid steel axles are used in this wagon, and the body 
rests on a half-elliptical spring, so that the weight of the 
load is brought near the ends of the axles ; that is why it 
is so strong. Then, instead of the body being perched high 
up in the air, so that it requires a complicated gymnastic 
feat to climb into it, it hangs low, only thirty-one inches 
from the ground, so that it is easy to load or unload, a 
feature that he who handles fruit or vegetable crates will 
know how to appreciate ; as a matter of course there is a 
drop tail-board to further facilitate loading or unloading. 

So much for the business view of the wagon. Looking 
at it now from the social side, we note that it has two com- 
fortable, movable seats, both full-back if desired, English 
corduroy or imitation leather ; an oil-carpet in the bottom, 
carriage-step, and, if a canopy top were added, one that 
could be put on or off at pleasure, no one need want a 
more comfortable, easy-riding family carriage than this 
very "handy wagon," which weighs, with the two seats, 
about three hundred and fifty pounds. 

It is not an expensive vehicle either ; in fact, consider- 
ing its durable qualities and good workmanship, it is very 
low in price, on the principle of "large sales and small 
profits." Here are the prices given : wagons with one seat 
$70, with two seats, one full-back, $75, or with two full- 



416 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

back seats $77.50. These prices are with shafts only ; for 
a double team, the j^ole complete costs $10 more. 

The above description applies also to a smaller size of 
Handy Wagon, only live feet long and with one (movable) 
seat. This is a lighter wagon than the two-seat, and for 
one horse would be even better for our Florida roads, since 
if more than the one seat was occasionally required, a cush- 
ioned board laid across from side to side would suffice. 

There are carts and carts; and if ever there was one 
country more than another where that popular little car- 
riage, the " road-cart," is in place, it is Florida. 

The old-style buggy is all very well where the roads are 
firm and straight ; but even there we like the road-cart 
best, for it is just as pleasant to ride in, just as roomy and 
a great deal easier on the horse. 

We w^ould like to see the buggy banished from our Flor- 
ida roads. They are for the most part sandy, and where 
there is much travel, soft and yieldiug, and four wheels 
for the horse to pull through the sand are just two more 
than are necessary. 

In driving here and there through the country, where, 
as is the case throughout the State, the roads are little 
more than wagon-tracks, and very eccentric ones at that, 
winding in and out around fallen trees, it frequently be- 
comes necessary to turn short and " about face," as cul-de- 
sacs are not uncommon. Eight here is one great advan- 
tage of the two wheels over the four in a carriage ; another 
is, that if the horse becomes frightened and wheels about, 
there is no upsetting, as there is with the four wheels, with 
danger to life and limb. 

The first of these carriage-carts that were introduced 
were not easy to ride in, and hence a prejudice was excited 
against them, and not unjustly either, for certainly the 
jogging horse-motion was far from pleasant. 



HELPFUL HINTS. 417 

In the present dainty "Bradley Two-wheeler," however, 
this objectionable motion is entirely overcome and the car- 
riage is as easy to ride in as the easiest bnggy, there is ab- 
solutely no horse-motion at all. 

These two-wheelers are handsome little vehicles, just the 
very things to gear a pony to and ' ' flee as a bird " over the 
country. 

There are several styles of the Bradley two- wheelers, 
with buggy tops, Avith canopy tops, or Avithout either, bug- 
gy bodies or phaeton bodies, bodies swung higher or lower, 
as desired ; the latter is best for ladies or children. 

We can not conceive a more perfect carriage for two per- 
sons than these two-wheelers. They are not only just the 
thing to go visiting in, but they are roomy enough to carry 
ordinary packages, whether dry goods or light groceries. 
The prices range from $80, without top or lamps, to $145 
with both. 

There is one point we have not yet mentioned, and it is 
a very important one : in common humanity let the wheels 
of every vehicle you use, whether cart, wagon, or two- 
wheeler have broad tires. Do not use the ordinary nar- 
row ones employed on the hard turnpiked Northern roads 
or paved streets ; remember that Florida roads are sandy 
roads, and be merciful to your horse. 

For cart or wagon the tires should be three inches wide, 
then the horse will be able to pull twice as much with half 
the fatigue ; for the buggy or two-wheeler, two inches will 
be wide enough. Do not overlook this point, or you will 
regret it ; we know whereof we speak from personal ex- 
perience ; Ave have used broad tires and noted their value. 

Another thing : do not trust the care of your vehicles 
to ignorant farm hands ; above all, look after the greasing 
of the Avheels yourself, for of this you may be certain, if 
you do not, they will either be totally neglected, to their 

27 



418 HOME LIFE IN FLOKIDA. 

own injury and that of the horse, or else "smothered" to 
the extent of clogging. In this case, as in many others, 
"enough is better than a feast." 

After your carriage or wagon has been used a year or 
two (or even longer if they have been cared for as they 
should be), they will look a little the worse for wear so far 
as paint and polish go. Then they should be done up. 

"Can't afford it. No coach-painter near." 

Well, you think so, doubtless. But we dispute both as- 
sertions. You can afford it, and there is a coach-painter 
near. He is as close as your own good right arm ; you 
can do it yourself, when once you know how. 

How to renovate the carriage or wagon : Let us suppose 
the body to be black, the wheels and running-gear red. 

First procure the following materials: One pound of 
drop-black ground in Japan ; if you can not get it ground 
in Japan, get it in linseed oil ; one pound of Indian red, for 
the w^heels and running-gear ; one quart of good varnish, 
several sheets of member one and a half sand-paper, and 
number five and a quarter ground pumice-stone (very fine). 

Rub the body first with sand-paper, then mix your drop- 
black with turpentine and varnish, and paint the body ; 
when thoroughly dry, rub it well with the pumice-stone and 
water on a rag ; then paint again, and when thoroughly dry 
varnish with clear varnish, Avithout the drop-black added. 

Mix the Indian red with linseed oil and turpentine, and 
paint the Avheels and running-gear ; when thoroughly dry 
varnish with clear varnish. 

It is best to do this Avork during the winter months, when 
there are no small insects to light upon it and impair its 
appearance, which will be equal to new. If there is a pat- 
ent-leather dasher to be looked after, rub in two or three 
coats of castor oil, or sweet oil, and, after it is well dried, 
a coat of varnish. 



HELPFUL HINTS. ^ 419 

You will also find, if you try, that you can re-stufFand 
cover cushions, line curtains, and ''fix up" your vehicles 
generally, not only improving their appearance, but con- 
tributing to their longevity. 

A thrifty farmer can also avoid having unsafe wheels, 
by soaking them thoroughly once a year with hot linseed 
oil, hiid on with a paint-brush ; keep it as hot as possible 
while using it — a small iron j^ot set on top of glowing em- 
bers is the best way. Wheels treated in this simple man- 
ner will last a life-time, and shrunken spokes and loose 
tires will be things obsolete. 

Of scarcely, if any, less importance than a good vehicle 
is harness of a similar character. From faults in these two 
particulars come more than half the accidents on the road 
that we see chronicled from time to time. Thanks to de- 
fective harness which gave way, frightening the horse, the 
writer was once thrown from a cart and dragged beneath 
it, holding fast to the reins, until the runaway brought up 
against a tree, as a Florida 'runaway is certain to do sooner 
or later. Yet that harness was supposed to be of excellent 
quality ; but it Avas not, as what might have been a fatal 
experience proved ; and so many like instances have come 
to our knowledge that we deem it a duty to our readers 
to put them on guard, and advise the purchase of harness 
direct from reliable manufacturers who have reputations 
to lose by sending out faulty harness. 

That there are many who come under this head we have 
no doubt ; but, personally, we only know of one, and are 
quite satisfied; and, as the State Granges of New Hamp- 
shire, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut give their 
unqualified indorsement of the manufacturing firm of King 
& Co., of Owego, New York, we feel no hesitation in fol- 
lowing in their lead, as, both for quality and low prices, 
we have been unable to find their equal. 



420 HOME LIFE IN FLOKIDA. 

* ' A reliable firm and offering specially good advantages 
to purchasers," says the committee of these Grangers ; and 
our Florida settlers who do not know where to turn for a 
good honest set of harness, that is sure, to be all that is 
claimed for it, will be wise to send to the manufacturers for 
their catalogue. "Every body knows," or ought to know, 
that goods bought direct from the manufacturer, wdiose 
whole fortune rests uj^on his reputation for fair dealing, are 
sure to be honest and their prices lower than when sold at 
second or third hand, where each handler has to make his 
profit from the purchaser. King & Co. make harness of 
all kinds, for carts and carriages, wagons and drays, single 
or double ; also saddles and bridles, and in all of these their 
retail prices are lower than can be found elsewhere for an 
inferior article offered as "the best." 

In ordering harness, do not make the mistake of select- 
ing the breast-strap instead of the collar and hames ; the 
former is suitable only for firm, smooth roads where the 
labor of pulling is light and easy, but is entirely out of 
place on sandy highways, bruising the muscles of the breast 
and crippling the horse. Neither draw the check-rein tight ; 
that is a needless cruelty at any time, but especially so 
where the animal needs full freedom of every muscle in 
order to haul with the least fatigue. Tie your own head 
back and then try to pull a loaded Avheelbarrow behind 
you, the wearisome strain of the muscles of the neck and 
shoulders will soon teach you something of the unneces- 
sary cross borne by the faithful horse who is tight-reined. 
We would dispense with the check- rein entirely, or else 
use the overdraw check very loose. 

So, also, whether in Florida or any where else on the face 
of the globe, would we consign those barbarous " blinkers," 
" winkers," or " blinders," to the tomb of the past. The lat- 
ter of these several names is literally the true one ; blind- 



HELPFUL HINTS. 421 

ers they are in every sense of the word ; and the idea that 
a horse will be less frightened if he hears a noise without 
seeing its origin is simply ridiculous. Apply it to yourself: 
Are you more courageous in the dark, hearing a noise you 
can not understand, than if you were to see its cause ? 

We most heartily indorse the paragraph below, written 
by the eminent naturalist, the Kev. J. G. Wood : 

'' I unhesitatingly condemn blinkers as being among the 
silliest of the silly devices whereby man has contrived to 
lessen the powers of the horse. The notion that horses are 
guarded by them from taking fright at alarming objects is 
utterly absurd, the horse being nervously timid when its 
senses are partially obscured, and dauntlessly courageous 
when facing a known danger. The horses employed on 
the Midland Railway wear no blinkers, and yet they walk 
about among the screaming whistles, snorting and puffing 
engines, as composedly as if they were in their own stables, 
not even requiring to be led. To be consistent, the horse's 
ears ought to be furnished with stoppers, so as to prevent 
the animal from hearing any sound that might frighten it. 
The only excuse for blinkers that has the least sense in it 
is, that they may possibly save the eyes of horses from the 
whips of brutal drivers. But as no man who would flog a 
horse about the head ought to be intrusted with a horse, 
even this very lame defense breaks down." 

The proper care of harness is another point upon which 
every one is not well informed, and it is an important one 
too, iuvolviug its long-continued usefulness. 

TO PRESERVE HARNESS. 

There is nothing that looks nicer in its way than a clean, 
bright-looking set of harness, nor is there any thing more 
quickly damaged by neglect. Harihess should be washed 
and oiled frequently. To do this effectually the straps 



422 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

should be unbuckled and detached and then washed with 
soft water and Castile soap, or crown soap, and hung by a 
slow fire or in the sun until nearly dry, then coated with a 
mixture of neatsfoot oil and tallow, and allowed to remain 
for several hours until perfectly dry, then rubbed thor- 
oughly with a woolen rag. The rubbing is important, as 
it, in addition to removing the surplus oil and grease, tends 
to close the pores and gives a finish to the leather. In hang- 
ing harness long wooden pegs should be provided and the 
straps allowed to hang always at their full length ; twisting 
up the traces, for instance, is a bad practice. 

HOME-MADE FURNITURE. 

Among our Florida settlers, as elsewhere, the money is 
frequently lacking to supply such household goods as re- 
fined taste would dictate, and packing-boxes and lumber 
from the neighboring saw-mill are often the only resources 
available. Many, however, are able to purchase, and for 
these we can point with pride to the firm of Cleaveland & 
Son, Jacksonville, dealers in furniture and bedding, as the 
largest and oldest house in the State of Florida, and the 
only one issuing a complete illustrated catalogue. Not only 
can we heartily indorse this house as being an honorable 
one, and its prices wonderfully low, but of late it has made 
a specialty of supplying incoming settlers, whether in col- 
onies or as individuals, with goods sold on the popular in- 
stallment plan. This inducement, coupled with the low 
prices at which they are placed, efiectually disposes of the 
question we have frequently been asked, "Is it cheaper to 
bring one's furniture, or to buy it in Florida?" If pur- 
chased of Cleaveland & Son, we believe the balance of ex- 
pense would be in favor of " buying it in Florida," except- 
ing only such special pieces of furniture as are valued for 
association's sake. 



HELPFUL HINTS. 423 

For stoves and other hardware, S. B. Hubbard & Co. 
will be found ready to meet every call satisfactorily. 

But for those who must trust to making the most of the 
materials at hand, the following directions will be found 
invaluable in creating order out of disorder, comfort out 
of discomfort, softness and beauty out of hard, angular 
ugliness, and plenty out of scant materials. 

And now let us see how to go to work to do all this. 

BED-ROOM FURNITURE. 

Suppose you have no bed — Avell, make one. Go out to 
the nearest hammock and get some strong, ^^liable saplings, 
hickory or oak, two for the sides of the bedstead, two for 
the ends ; for the legs you want thicker saplings, sawed off 
to the height you wish the posts to be ; if you want a head- 
board, let the posts run up accordingly. Of course the 
bark must be peeled off from the saplings before they are 
fit to use. Into one side of each post cut a notch at the 
height from the floor that you desire your bed to be — re- 
membering to allow for the height of the mattress — of such 
a size as to allow the side and end saplings to fit neatly 
within them, then a few nails or screws will render them 
secure, and if you have a firm foundation to work upon, 
if the posts are stout enough, and if you can get an auger 
that will bore a hole through them large enough for the 
saplings to slip into, so much the better ; in this case, use 
hot glue in the holes liberally before putting in the side 
and end pieces. A light hempen rope run in and out in 
a net-work from one end of the frame-work to the other, 
tightly drawn, makes a first-rate spring. This is for a 
" tural-lural" bedstead that need not cost a penny, unless 
it is for rope and cutting the saplings ; but if you prefer 
to procure lumber from a mill, the bedstead can be made 
on the same plan ; in this case the rope can be dispensed 



424 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

with, the side pieces made deeper, a slat nailed on the bot- 
tom and battens laid across from side to side to support the 
mattress. But this would not give as much spring as the 
rope. If you have a fence made of pickets and wires, go 
and look at it and get an idea. There is a good deal of 
spring in that, and by driving staples in the ends of your 
home-made bedstead, weaving some pliable wire in and out 
around the laths or battens, and twisting the ends of the 
wires through the staples, you will have a veritable spring- 
bed. All cracks can be filled up with common brown soap, 
and then there will be no trouble about vermin. 

About the head-board : If you are making the rustic 
bedstead, stretch tightly across from post to post (a slat 
nailed across at the top is an improvement) a piece of 
muslin, satin or calico, plain satteen or muslin, a floral 
design worked on it in outline stitch in the center makes 
a very neat finish. If, however, the bedstead is made of 
our Florida pine lumber, a pretty head-board could be 
made from selected pieces nailed across from j^ost to post, 
and the top board could be sawed into an arched form, 
then, if oiled and varnished, or stained with walnut stain, 
no one need wish for a neater looking bedstead. 

The mattress : Florida moss, pine needles, palmetto 
leaves, or excelsior, are all good materials for the filling. 
The moss should be buried for a month or more, then 
washed and dried ; the pine needles should be washed and 
then thoroughly dried, this is^all the preparation they need ; 
for palmetto, procure the green leaves, cut them from the 
midrib and strip each blade, a three-tined fork is a good 
implement to use, let them dry thoroughly. Of these three 
home products we prefer the latter, it makes a clean, sweet, 
springy mattress that will last for years, so that the trouble 
of gathering and preparing them is fully repaid. If you 
have excelsior -at hand, this, also, will serve the purpose, 



HELPFUL HINTS. 425 

either by itself, or used in connection with one of the other 
stuffing materials ; but it is the least desirable. 

As to the making of the mattress, here are directions 
furnished by one of our Florida housekeepers, which have 
borne the test of eight years' experience : ' ' Make the tick 
for a double bed in two sections, it is so much easier to 
handle, and then there is never any sagging or ridge in 
the middle of the bed. If possible, buy a good article of 
ticking, for, if properly made, it should last a life-time. 
In cutting, allow a good margin both in length and breadth, 
else it will draw up in the stuffing, and be too short and 
too narrow. 

" Cut out and sew up, box shape — a glance at a ready- 
made mattress will show you how ; put the seams inside to 
avoid harbors for insects; leave one end half open in the 
middle of the seam. Have ready strong tape or strips of 
ticking cut in lengths of about six inches ; sew these to 
the wrong side of the tick with stout thread, about nine 
inches apart ; place a folded bit of the ticking or bright- 
colored cloth or leather on the top side, and sew through 
all very securely. Be very careful that each strip on the 
top-side is exactly opposite the corresponding one on the 
bottom side. K^ow, keeping your tick wrong side out, or 
rather, turned back to the first row of strings, stuff the 
interval between these and the end with your moss or pal- 
metto, or whatever else you use, and do not spare it, stuff 
in all you possibly can — remember it will settle with use ; 
then tie the strings securely, slip the ticking along to the 
next row of strings, and proceed as before, and so continue 
until the stuffing is completed ; then sew uj) the end, and 
your mattress is an accomplished fact." 

In lieu of springs, an under-ticking may be made, leav- 
ing one half the seam oj)en in the middle of the top, and 
filled with pine needles. The odor of the pine is very pleas- 



426 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

ant and healthful, and by pushing a broom-stick in the 
open slit the needles are stirred up and kept from packing. 

The great advantage of this method of making the tick- 
ing lies in the facility with which it may be emptied, the 
contents j^icked over and replaced, making each time a 
" good as new" mattress, without the labor of a new tick- 
ing ; there is no ripping to be done except at the end which 
was sewed up last, only the strings to untie and tie again. 

Bolsters and pillows : For bolsters and pillows, the same 
materials as for the mattress — pine needles, palmetto, moss, 
shavings — are often used ; but for those who can procure 
them, feathers are far preferable, especially for the pillows. 
They need not be geese feathers to be comfortable ; those 
of chickens, killed for the table, are good enough if prop- 
erly cured, and this is a simple matter ; scalding does not 
hurt them ; all that is necessary is to dry them very thor- 
oughly. A good way is to put them in a bag and lay them 
in a moderately warm oven ; the small feathers are all right, 
but the pen-feathers (wings and tail) need to be stripped. 

The bureau : For the bureau, a box of suitable size is 
just the thing, and four blocks glued and nailed at the 
corners will make the feet ; if you have casters, so much 
the better ; always use them, if possible, on heavy furni- 
ture, it saves all around, the furniture itself, the floor, the 
carpet and, more than all, your own strength. Many a 
woman has made herself an invalid for life by pushing or 
pulling or lifting heavy furniture. Sisters, don't do it ; if 
you can not have casters, let the dirt be ; better that than 
injure your health. 

Instead of drawers, which are difficult for an amateur 
to fit properly, put in shelves. Strips nailed on the inside 
of the box for the shelving to rest on are best ; it is best, 
too, not to fasten the shelves, but slip them in, so that they 
can be readily taken out to clean. A front nailed on the 



HELPFUL HINTS. 427 

outer side of the shelves, three or four inches high, will 
keep clothing and small articles from falling out, while a 
neat curtain, parting in the center, Avill conceal the shelves 
and their contents. The same material can be tacked 
smoothly on the sides, or the latter can be painted, var- 
nished, or stained with walnut stain. If one is skillful 
enough to make doors for the bureau, so much the better. 
Then, if a mirror is forthcoming, make a frame that will 
fit around it, the two side pieces running down and being 
screwed to the back of the bureau. To fasten the glass to 
the uprights, put a strip across the back, screwed to the 
frame of the mirror and also to the uprights. The top 
can be finished like a pointed arch or straight across, as 
preferred. The uprights should be at least three inches 
wide, and this will allow a small bracket to be fastened to 
each one to hold candles, toilet bottles, vases or jewel boxes. 

The washstand : As good a washstand as one need want 
can be made from a box stood on end, with a top made of 
boards, if not large enough without. Around the top nail 
a strip that shall project about half an inch above the sur- 
face, so as to form a ledge, omitting it in front of course. 
A narrow shelf, raised up a little, running across the back, 
furnishes a good resting-place for the soap-cup, tooth-brush 
holder and cup, leaving the top free for pitcher and basin. 
One or two shelves fitted inside the box make a nice closet 
for medicine bottles, salve, old linen handkerchiefs (handy 
for binding up the " wounded heroes" of the family), and 
other odds and ends of a like nature. 

Toilet table : A barrel with a couple of boards nailed 
across will make an excellent foundation for a toilet table. 
The top, if planed, may be painted or varnished ; if rough, 
some kind of cloth or muslin should be drawn smoothly 
over it and tacked at the edges ; then full around it mate- 
rial to match, and you will have a very pretty toilet table. 



428 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

A mirror, if you prefer it here instead of on the bureau, 
adds very much to its appearance, especially if set off by 
a "half-circle shelf" above it, fastened to the wall, from 
which depends some graceful drapery, parted in the center 
and sweeping to either side of the table. A square hole 
cut in the front or side of the barrel at the base, makes a 
convenient receptacle for shoes or a hat-box, which is en- 
tirely concealed by the drapery. 

THE ROSS NOVELTY RUG MACHINE. 

This is a subject that excites our enthusiasm, and well it 
may, as we look around us upon the handsome rugs of wool- 
en yarn and rags, and the silk chair covers, and table cov- 
ers, that our household owes to this little wonder-worker. 

With this simple machine in hand (it is so very simple 
that a child can use it), there is not a scrap of cotton, silk, 
or woolen rags, old coats, merino stockings or dresses, that 
can not be utilized, with ease, and converted into handsome, 
durable rugs, mats, chair, ottoman, lounge or table covers ; 
and the lighter shades of these otherwise ' ' waste pieces " 
can be readily dyed by the aniline dyes of any color or 
shade desired. 

The Ross Novelty Machine costs but one dollar by mail 
(Ross & Co., Toledo, Ohio, are the manufacturers), but 
the number of dollars that may be saved by its use are in- 
finite. Let us see how it works. 

The first thing after getting your machine ("first catch 
your hare") is to get a frame, a very simple aflfair, four 
strips, one and a half inches wide, one inch thick ; two of 
the four strips should be six or seven feet long — the latter 
is safer, if you want large rugs — and the other two, three 
feet long; bore auger-holes through them, about three 
inches apart, of a size to fit the four common iron bolts, 
with nuts, which complete the frame ; if stained with black 



HELPFUL HINTS. 429 

walnut, the latter will look very neat ; yellow pine, how- 
ever, will only need to be sand-paj^ered and varnished. Of 
course, having the frame made this way, it can he put to- 
gether, by means of the bolts, to suit any size rug desired. 

The manufacturers supply regular patterns for rugs, lap- 
robes, and foot-stools, stamped upon burlap all ready for 
working, and also carpet yarn of the proper colors. These 
make soft, thick, beautiful rugs serviceable enough for 
door-mats, handsome enough for the parlor, and they are 
not expensive either. At the same time, it is not necessary 
to purchase these ; armed with the little machine, and an 
oat or corn sack, and some woolen rags cut about a quarter 
of an inch wide (not sewed) , you can make as handsome a 
rug as any one need desire, without its costing one cent. 
Turn the edges of the oat sack, stitch them down to make 
them strong, then set the frame so that it will be about an 
inch larger than the prepared piece, and then with strong 
twine, fastening the four corners first, and a stout needle, 
a sail-needle or short ui^holsterer's needle, sew in the sack- 
ing, drawing it as tight and straight as possible. Then 
you are ready to go to work, having your rags cut and 
handy in a basket at your side. Nearly all the work can 
be done sitting in a chair ; neither is there any hard push- 
ing, but just a quiet simple motion of the hand pushing 
the needle and loop in and out; the stitch is automatic, 
the same size each time. 

You can work the colors just as they come, "hit or miss," 
or you can lay the sacking on the floor after it is stretched 
and draw on it any design you fancy ; work right on the 
pattern, it will be thrown out on the other, or right side, 
and also turn the hemmed-down edge toward you, so that 
the right side will be smooth, no ravelings to work up and 
spoil the neatness of the rug. 

The writer has made rugs on the stamped burlap patterns, 



430 HOME LIFE IN FLOKIDA. 

using woolen rags, and the result is almost if not quite 
equal to the effect of the carpet yarn. A pattern one yard 
long and half as wide costs forty cents and makes a good- 
sized rug, the yarn for this costs ninety cents ; a rug pat- 
tern one yard and three quarters by one and a half yards 
costs seventy-five cents, and the yarn about two dollars and 
a half. Of course the yarns are nicer for parlor use if they 
can be afforded, but if not, the woolen rags, especially if 
some silk be mixed with them, are almost as haudsome. 

Armed with this little rug machine, oat sacks, and rags, 
the work of brightening up the floors and covering the 
furniture of the plainest houses will not only be easy but 
pleasant. The work is really fascinating. For ten cents, 
the manufacturers send a little book of colored patterns 
from which to order. 

We find so much rest and relief for mind and body, and 
so much profit for our home surroundings, in this light, 
pleasant occupation, that can be taken up or dropped at a 
moment's notice, the frame and chairs standing always 
ready, that we feel grateful to the little rug machine, and 
would like to see one in every home all over the laud ; no 
better investment could be made of a dollar. 

The making of rugs and covers by no means exhausts 
the list of its virtues ; added to these are tidies, lap-robes 
for carriages, lamp-mats, wrist-warmers, winter caps for 
girls and boys, slippers, warm smoking caps for men, and 
nice mittens ; for these last and the caps the manufacturers 
furnish patterns. In fact, there seems to be hardly any limit 
to the articles that may be made with this little machine, 
with its two Avorking parts, the needle and loop-holder. 

We have heard of a crumb-cloth and stair-carpet being 
made with it ; but that seems a waste of time, when they 
can be bought so cheaply ; a silk bed-spread could be made, 
however, one that would be very handsome and durable. 



HELPFUL HINTS. 431 

THE BARREL CHAIR. 

No list of home-made furniture would be complete with- 
out the famous old-time barrel chair, which is really, if 
properly made, one of the most cosy resting-places imagin- 
able. 

You want a good, strong barrel for the foundation, sugar 
barrel for instance, and the first thing to do is to nail the 
central hoop firmly to the staves, clinch nails are best to 
use ; then secure the bottom hoop half way across the bar- 
rel intact, to serve as a back, which can be varied in height 
and shape as desired, and made with arms or without. The 
seat is formed by nailing stout pieces of wood to the sides 
of the barrel of the proper height to reach from the bot- 
tom to the seat, when placed on end ; three or four placed 
at equal distances around the inside will make a good found- 
ation for nailing across stout strips of webbing, two or three 
each way interwoven. If you have not got the Avebbing, 
strips of strong ticking, doubled and stitched, from two to 
three inches wide, will do as well. Over this tack strong 
bagging — an oat sack will do very well. 

Make sure that this is not slighted, for it is not condu- 
cive to comfort or good temper to sit down on an empty 
space, as sometimes happens if the seat of a chair is not 
securely made. 

The next step is to make a cushion of the same shaj)e as 
the back, and another for the seat, and tack them in place. 
Then cover the rest of the chair neatly with the same ma- 
terial, chintz or cretonne are best. If one is willing to 
take the trouble to tuft the cushions, they will be all the 
more comfortable, and the chair will look like an expen- 
sive, regularly upholstered piece of furniture. 

Two or three of these barrel chairs will be found very 
cosy in the family sitting-room, and half-barrels, treated 
the same way, make comfortable chairs for the little folks. 



432 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 

Strong packing-boxes also can be transformed into very 
desirable chairs, by sawing them into the proper shape and 
then proceeding as "with the barrels. If the bottom of the 
box as it stands in position for the chair is left intact, and 
the seat made of solid board and hinged, a first-class shoe 
or hat-box results. The cushion should be tacked to the 
lid so as not to be displaced. 

' ' Eockers ? " Why, yes, of course you can have rockers. 
They can be sawed out from a thick board, and made as 
good as a "bought rocker." 

A divan, as pretty as it is comfortable, may be easily 
made if you have a spare mattress, and if you have not 
it will pay to make one, only, in this case, it might be as 
well to make it in tAvo sections, the one for the back, the 
other for the seat. 

But supposing that you have the spare mattress on hand, 
this is the way to make the divan : place the mattress so 
that one third of it rests against the wall, then fold the 
other part over toward it, and fasten the folded parts in 
proper positions, the back and seat at right angles. If you 
can place it on a box or platform about a foot high, so 
much the better, but it will do very well without. With 
a pretty cover of some cheap material and one or two 
square pillows to match, you will find that you have one 
of the most cosy resting-places imaginable. 

A HOME-MADE REFRIGERATOR. 

Obtain tw^o common dry-goods boxes, of such sizes that 
the smaller one will be large enough to hold the ice and 
food you wish to keep within it, and the other will be 
about four inches larger around. The smaller one must 
be lined with zinc, or it will absorb moisture from the ice 
and soon make trouble. Near one corner of the bottom 
of the smaller box bore a hole an inch in diameter, and, 



HELPFUL HINTS. 433 

when the box is lined with zinc, have a tube about seven 
inches long securely fastened in this hole. There must be 
no crevice into which the water can soak. A cover, which 
also should be zinc-lined, must be fitted to the box. Then 
j^rocure some charcoal, broken finely, and fill the larger 
box (in which a hole has first been bored to receive the tube 
from the inner box) with the powdered charcoal to a depth 
of about four inches. Place the smaller box on the char- 
coal, and fill the space between the sides of the two boxes 
with the charcoal, up even with the inner box, and cover 
the space with a neat strip of board. This will give you a 
box with double bottom and sides filled with charcoal, the 
very best of non-conductors. With an outer cover, the 
size of the larger box, and four blocks to raise the whole 
from the floor, so that a pan may be placed under the tube 
to catch the water which comes from the melted ice, the 
whole will be done, except to add shelves as desired. 

An improvement on this plan could be made by arrang- 
ing the boxes so that the ice would be at the top, with the 
shelves below, the outer cover becoming a door, and the 
top hinged to admit the ice. 

How to preserve food with sulphur is another good thing 
to know, especially where ice is not obtainable. 

It is very simple, yet effective. Take an ordinary wood- 
en box, make the joints air-tight, hinge the lid and make 
that also air-tight ; then bore a series of holes around the 
sides, inside, not through, but deep enough to drive wood- 
en pegs into. On these pegs hang any meat, fish or game, 
that you wish to keep ; place in the box a tin plate with 
some sand and a few live coals, sprinkle on the latter a 
little sulphur, close the box and the work is done. Food, 
cooked or raw, can be kept in this way for a week or more. 
There is no taste or smell. 



^.- ^ 



